The 2019 edition of the South Florida Fair will feature concerts by bands representing everything from Christian, Southern rock and Latin to good ol’ rock ’n’ roll and country music.
In addition, multiple versions of Elvis will be in the house at next year’s fair, which will kick off with its ride-a-thon at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 17. The full fair will be held Friday, Jan. 18 through Sunday, Feb. 3 at the South Florida Fairgrounds.
Christian rock band Building 429 will kick off the concert schedule at 8 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 20. The band’s name was inspired by the passage in Ephesians 4:29 and got its start in North Carolina when Jason Roy and Scotty Beshears met at Snyder Memorial Baptist Church. The band was named the Gospel Music Association’s 2005 New Artist of the Year and continues to be dedicated to sharing messages of God through songs and concerts.
On Wednesday, Jan. 23, Southern rock legends the Outlaws will take the stage at 8 p.m. during the first of two bike nights. Through more than 40 years of performing, the Outlaws became one of the most influential and best-loved bands of the genre. The band established itself in Tampa in 1972 and became known for its triple-guitar rock attack and three-part country harmonies. The band has returned to the road with new music and is enjoying its second life.
Country-blues-rocker Frankie Ballard will perform at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 24. He released his latest album, El Rio, to critical acclaim and was selected by Rolling Stone as one of the 25 Best Country and Americana albums of 2016 and The Tennessean as one of the best 16 Nashville albums of 2016. The singer-songwriter has had three No. 1 country hits to date and boasts Spotify streams in excess of 2.2 million.
There will be a whole lotta shakin’, rattlin’ and rollin’ happening in the fair’s party pavilion when the Elvis Extravaganza Impersonator Contest begins with the preliminaries on Monday, Jan. 28, and continues on Tuesday, Jan. 29, with the finals. The contest will feature a variety of Elvis impersonators competing for cash, prizes and title of “The World’s Finest Elvis Impersonator.” The winners will go to the national competition in Las Vegas. The show is backed by the Extravaganza Show Band, horns and singers. Any impersonator who would like to compete during open round one should visit www.elviscontest.com to sign up.
On the second bike night at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 30, the Pat Travers Band will perform. Canadian-born Travers is a rock guitarist, keyboardist and singer who began his recording career in the mid-1970s. Considered a “guitar hero” by many musicians, Kirk Hammett of Metallica cited him as one of his favorite guitar players. He has led numerous successful tours with different band members, and the current Pat Travers Band consists of Travers on guitars, vocals and keyboards, Tommy Craig on drums and David Pastorius on bass and vocals.
The sounds of country music will return to the party pavilion on Thursday, Jan. 31 with Jordan Davis. A native of Shreveport, La., Davis graduated from LSU and briefly pursued the path of his degree working as an environmental consultant. However, his passion for music and songwriting eventually compelled him to move to Nashville in 2012. His Platinum-certified debut single, “Singles You Up,” recently hit No.1 on the country airplay charts and ranks as the most played song on country radio this year.
The national entertainment will conclude on Friday, Feb. 1, with Latin Grammy nominee and salsa legend Charlie Aponte. For more than 40 years, the Puerto Rican salsa singer was the lead vocalist for the nation’s legendary El Gran Combo. He became one of the most well-known soneros, not only in Puerto Rico, but internationally. Aponte left the spotlight at age 62 when he retired from El Gran Combo in late 2014 but that didn’t last long. He released his debut solo album, Una Nueva Historia, on Top Stop Music in 2015.
All concerts are free with a fair admission ticket. Advance discount fair tickets are on sale now at all Palm Beach County Publix locations and will continue through Jan. 17. General seating is free with a fair admission ticket. Reserved seating also is available for purchase online starting Dec. 3 at www.southfloridafair.com for $10, which is in addition to the fair admission ticket.
A single admission for ages 12-59 is $10 in advance, $15 at the gate Monday through Friday and $20 Saturday and Sunday. Senior admission for 60 years of age and older pay $7 in advance and $9 at the gate. A child’s admission, under 12, is $5 in advance and $8 at the gate. Age five and younger are free. For more information, call (561) 793-0333 or visit www.southfloridafair.com.
