The hottest event this week is the 25th anniversary of the Laurel StreetFair World Music festival taking over the neighborhood this Saturday for a day of fun in the sun. Also, if you are a millennial who continues to listen to music from our youth, then you’ll want to check the 2000s Day Party at For The Culture featuring a performance by R&B singer Nivea. 

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Hot Ticket in The Town this week: 25th Annual Laurel StreetFair World Music Festival

Now in its 25th year, the festival has taken over eight city blocks on MacArthur Boulevard between 35th and Maybelle Avenues. The day-long event includes live music from genres all over the world. his year’s performers include Afro-Brazilian courtesy of SambaFunk!, In Lak’ech Danza Azteca, Polynesian and Hawaiian dancing by Halau Makana, MJ’s Brass Boppers, and many others. Also, the Akoma Market and Rollerskating Rink hosted by Black Cultural Zone, a healing village hosted by Freedom Community Clinic, and more. Dogs are welcome to roam the festival so long as they are on a leash.
Saturday, Aug. 8, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., free, MacArthur Boulevard between 35th and Maybelle avenues

We Are Neighbors Together: The Harrison

For the past year, cultural researcher and artist Sue Mark has been working alongside photographer Monique Blodgett of Commons Archive to document the lives of the residents and staff at the Harrison Hotel, a single-room-occupancy building in downtown Oakland. Mark and Blodgett have developed a series of murals and a new documentary from the conversations and interviews, all on display at The Oakland Lowdown, a hub for journalists and artists. 

The exhibit will be on display through the end of September, and is currently up in the main street-facing windows of the Lowdown and the Harrison Hotel (which stretches around the corner of 14th and Harrison). There’s also a monitor playing the documentary on a loop with sound from the Lowdown’s window on14th street.
Through the end of September, The Lowdown, 300 14th St.

The 2000s Day Party featuring Nivea

R&B singer Nivea, known for her 2000 feature in rapper Mystikal’s track “Danger” and her 2002 single “Don’t Mess with my Man” will be performing live at this themed party. The party, put together by the Good Vbz events crew, will feature sets by DJs Heartbreak, Red Corvette and H Holla. The event will be hosted by stand-up comedian Janeé Lucas. Dress in your best throwback looks: low-rise jeans, tracksuits, or BabyPhat jeans.
Saturday, Aug. 8, 3 p.m., $33.85+, For The Culture, 701 Clay St.

Porcelain, a band from Austin, Texas will make their Oakland debut at Thee Stork Club on Aug. 12. Credit: courtesy of the band

AfterGlow Chorus: ‘The Gift of Love: Music for Healing & Loss’

The AfterGlow Chorus — a group of 40 singers from various musical backgrounds — is hosting a special concert billed as a “dynamic, holistic journey” to help concert-goers dealing with loss and grief. The event will include quiet moments of “serenity and light.” The music part of the setlist include classical masterworks, including Susan LaBarr’s “Angele Dei,” Stacey Gibbs’ “Wade in the Water,” Richard Smallwood’s modern gospel masterpiece “Healing,” Nathan Carter’s “If I Can Help Somebody,” and Sam Cooke’s classic “Bring It on Home to Me.”
Sunday, Aug. 9, 4 p.m., $28.52+, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 114 Montecito Ave.

Porcelain band at Thee Stork Club

Porcelain is a four-piece rock band that emerged from Austin’s music scene. The band will be making its West Coast debut this month, including a stop in Oakland. The band’s album, “Today’s Minor Victories,” will be released on Oct. 23 via TODO Records, and their lead single, “Apocalypse” is out now.
Wednesday, Aug. 12, 7 p.m., 21 and up, $16.49, Thee Stork Club, 2330 Telegraph Ave.

Coming soon to The Town: YG ‘The Gentlemen’s Club’ at the Oakland Arena

Compton rapper YG is going on a 19-city tour that includes Oakland to promote his seventh studio album “The Gentlemen’s Club”, released on June 19. 
Saturday, Oct. 31, 8 p.m., $66.40+, Oakland Arena, 7000 Coliseum Way

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