Back for its ninth year, Venice Beach Music Fest music and arts festival returns to rock the beach with a free, full day of entertainment on Saturday, Aug. 23.
It will be held from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Windward Plaza at 1 Windward Avenue, between the boardwalk and the bike trail.
Click here for photos from 2013!
The festival showcases the best of local and international musical talent, belly dance, a samba parade, independent artists and authors, and more.
The festival is free and open to the public. An after-show party with more musical entertainment immediately follows at Danny’s Venice.
This year’s festivities include a vast array of musical offerings. VBMF9 is proud to welcome back Willie Chambers of the legendary Chambers Brothers as this year’s headline.
Samba Da Mudança dance and drum troupe kicks off the festivities at 11 a.m. with a samba parade down Ocean Front Walk, and a nonstop day of music follows on the Ocean Stage, featuring: Roots Collective (multi-genre world beat); The Greg Douglass Band (guitarist from Steve Miller Band, Van Morrison) with special guest Barry “The Fish” Melton (of Country Joe and The Fish); Jah Faith and The Hashishans (reggae); Zen Robbi (swing/funk fusion); The Untouchables (ska); and The King Brothers (blues). Musical sets will be interspersed with dance performances by Samba Da Mudança and Ya Harissa Bellydance Theater.
Visit www.VeniceBeachMusicFest.com
VBMF9 is proud to support the arts by hosting an art show that is free for independent artists.
Visual artists showing their works include internationally recognized artists art by sky, Audrey McNamara, RaRa SuperStar, Brian Mylius, Paula Celzo, Brandy Orvis, and more TBA. Venice author Steve Bevilacqua will be signing copies of his book, Kafka at the Beach: A Layman’s Handbook for Those Falsely Accused of Felonies.
Angel City Brewery will be set up with games, giveaways, and the ACB Canvas Project, a community art project. Eclectic Hoops will have hoops available for play and purchase. Mystic Rainbow will have their amazing tie-dye clothing for sale at the merchandise booth, where they will also be providing free samples of Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps. The festival is proud to provide space for local nonprofit organizations such as the Venice Art Crawl and the Free Venice Beachhead to share community information.
An after-party will be hosted by Danny’s Venice (23 Windward Avenue) from 7:30 p.m. until 1 a.m. Musical acts performing at the after party include: Gumbo Brothers, Hi-Stereo, and Milo Gonzalez and Friends with special guest Chuck Dukowski (of Black Flag). Gonzalez and Dukowski regularly perform together in CD6, The Chuck Dukowski Sextet.
This free festival is made possible by support from local and national businesses that continue to prove their dedication to preserving the arts in our community.
Visit www.VeniceBeachMusicFest.com
