Don't Miss Outdoor Festival - St. Paul and the Broken Bones headline the kickoff concert for TuckFest. It's a weekend of competitions and live music at the 5 p.m. U.S. National Whitewater Rafting Center, 5000 Whitewater Center Parkway.
Film Festival - The 2016 GayCharlotte Film Festival features full-length drama and comedies, documentaries and short films. Various times throughout the weekend. Theatre Charlotte, 501 Queens Rd, 501 Queens Rd.
Evening Race - Come out for an evening of running, eating and drinking in FreeMoreWest in the 4th annual FreeMoreWest 5Kat FreeMoreWest's 5K on the Greenway. After the race, enjoy food from 2 Chicks & a Truck and Olde Mecklenburg Brewing beer. Benefits Classroom Central. 6 p.m. Uptown Cycles, 1432 W Morehead St.
It’s Back - The occasional Takeover Friday returns. The Charlotte LGBT Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a business expo at Takeover Friday at Le Meridien Charlotte. Music by DJ Little Betty. Le Meridien, 555 S McDowell Street
Happy Birthday- Join the EpiCentre as it celebrates Rooftop 210 Anniversary & Season Opener. VIP Happy Hour 8 p.m. Rooftop 210, 210 E. Trade St.
More Jazz - The monthly edition of New Frequencies returns with Trio Red Space. Charlotte duo Ghost Trees opens. 8 p.m. McColl Center, $10/$12. Details.
Concert Series - Another weekly concert series returns tonight with SouthPark Cocktails & Concerts each Friday featuring live music until May 6. 5 p.m. Piedmont Town Center, 4725 Piedmont Row Drive. Details.
The CIAA tournament is known for drawing dozens of unofficial parties, but the week is also draws a large number of concerts. These are actual shows not hosting events behind VIP ropes. Here's a sampling of this year's tournament concerts.
The Official Legends of Hip Hop Concert, The Convention Center, 501 South College St. EPMD & The Alumni, Chubb Rock, Special Ed, Monie Love, Dana Dane and Kwame headline this official CIAA concert. 8 p.m. Tickets.
I Love New York, Amos Southend,1423 S. Tryon St.
The I Love New York concert features Method Man, Redman and Keith Murray performing their hits such as “The Most Beautifulliest Girl In the World,” “A-Yo!” and “Do What You Feel.”
8 p.m. $40 and up. Old School hip-hop fans will love this. TJ's Take: Parking will be a challenge, but not nearly as bad as uptown. Tickets.
Young Jeezy, The Fillmore, 820 Hamilton St. Jeezy’s hit “My Hitta” got him on the charts, but a shout out from President Obama gave Jeezy even more cred. $77. $10 p.m. TJ's Take: Price is outrageous. Details.
Friday, 2/26
The Language of Love Concert, Amos’ Southend
Aaron Camper, Grammy nominee Bilal (“Soul Sista”) and Grammy nominee Eric Roberson headlines The Language of Love Concert. 8:30 p.m. $29.50 and up. TJ's Take:Eric Roberson performs here all of the time. Bilal doesn’t. Details.
Dru Hill 20th Anniversary Party, Amos’ Southend Dru Hill’s lead singer Sisqo biggest hit “Thong Song” helped him a bigger start than the Baltimore-based group. Still Dru Hill had its fair share of success with hits “In My Bed,” “Never Make A Promise” and “How Deep Is Your Love.” $40. TJ's Take: Worth checking out. I can’t remember the last time Dru Hill performed here. Details.
Saturday, 2/27 King Fish, BluNotes, 3425 David Cox Road
Mississippi-based blues master King Fish returns for an encore performance. Kingfish headlined the grand opening last year. Xpressive Sound — funk, soul and blues band - will open. 7 p.m. $20. TJ's Take: Great price and awesome location. Parking shouldn’t be a hassle. Details.
The Official CIAA Post Tournament Concert ft. Mint Condition, Lyfe Jennings & Vivian Green, Charlotte Convention Center
Sing-along, dance along and reminisce with Mint Condition. This band puts on a great show with a full band. Lyfe Jennings and Vivian Green deliver heartfelt ruminations about life and love. Details.
The Commission & King Lyfe Ent pres. Kevin Gates – Islah Tour Part 2, The Fillmore
Louisiana-based rapper Kevin Gates built his reputation selling mixtapes and flirtations with bounce and trap music has found his groove with “Really Really.” Details. (Explicit)
Pieces of A Dream, Halton Theater, 1206 Elizabeth Ave.
Contemporary jazz band Pieces of a Dream with special guest Selina Albright. The Peace and Love Band will open. 8 p.m. $45 and up. Definitely for the grown folks and you won’t have to deal with traffic. Details.
Patti Labelle, Ovens Auditorium, 2700 E Independence Blvd.
This show would sell out if Patti Labelle brought some Patti Pies! Since she didn't, you'll have to settle for her classic hits such as "Lady Marmalade." $50 and up. Details.
Sunday
King, Neighborhood Theater, 511 East 36th Street
L.A. trio King performs cuts off its debut album “We Are King.” Pitchfork gave the trio’s single “Hey” much love in it’s review. The Queen’s Guard will open. 7 p.m. $20 and up. TJ's Take:This is one of those shows that you should see now before the group explodes.Details.
A big congratulations to the organizers of the Novant Health Thanksgiving Parade. Attendance reached an estimated 70,000 this year! The parade kicked off the most wonderful time of the year when football and basketball collide with shopping and parties. Let's get started.
Thursday
Country star - Brantley Gilbert most recently opened for Toby Keith and Tim McGraw, but now he's headlining his own arena show. 7 p.m. Time Warner Cable Arena,333 E. Trade St.$34.78-$47.89. Read Theoden Janes' article on Gilbert.
Family Fun - Head to The Square for Lights On the Square: The Uptown Tree Lighting. ACC mascots join the festivities to start the ACC Tournament weekend. Families can enjoy Santa Village in Polk Park (free photos!), and a performance by The Wonderettes! Food trucks will be there too. 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. The Square, Trade and Tryon streets. Tree lighting starts shortly after 6:30pm. Parking tips. Friday
It's Your Anniversary- Birdsong Brewery Third Year Anniversary features new brews each weekend night starting tonight with Puppies on Penguins and Nighthawk Postcard, Sour Stout with Raspberries. The three-day celebration begins at 4 p.m. Birdsong Brewery,2315 N Davidson St.
Cats! Cats! Cats! - Join the Queen City Cats, UK alumni group, when the #BBN takes over Sip Charlotte, 200 N. Tryon St. Suite 100 to watch Kentucky v. Texas. 7 p.m.
Saturday
Family fun - The ACC Football Championship is today so there's lots of free fun. It starts with theACC Fan 5K and Kids Mascot Runat 8 a.m., Wells Fargo Plaza, Uptown Charlotte. Then enjoy free concerts, autograph sessions and watch ACC mascots square off during the ACC Football Championship Fan Fest. Noon - 7 p.m., adjacent to Bank of America Stadium along Mint, Graham and Stonewall streets. Florida State vs. Georgia Techstarts at 8 p.m. Purchase tickets.
Party With Local Grassroots Artists- Cultural Initiative: An Art Social Fresh showcases 25 local and regional grassroots artists. Their works will be on display and for sale, but this is more than an art show. The music will be ridiculous featuring: Miami Dice and Elonzo, and Charlotte's Justin Aswell along with vocals by Charleston's Jordan Igoe. 8:30 p.m. Neighborhood Theater. Limited free street parking. Bring cash for parking.
6th Annual Red Pump/Red Tie Affair - This is the signature event for the Red Pump Project which highlights HIV and AIDS impact on women and girls. The event will feature a fashion show, a silent auction and local boutiques. R.A.I.N. President and CEORev. Debbie Warren is this year's honoree. 7 - 10 p.m., Hart Witzen Gallery, 136 E 36th St. Tickets: $40. Driving Alert: Access via South Tryon Street instead of North Davidson Street because of road construction.
Sunday
New Brunch Spot - Restaurant critic Helen Schwab reports that Lumiere plans to start serving Sunday brunch today. More details on Helen's blog. Update 12/7! Lumiere says they are not serving brunch.
Read more here: http://helendining.blogspot.com/#storylink=cpy
I'm back!!! In 2005, I launched the Paid To Party column for the Observer. Now I'm back with a fresh look at Charlotte's entertainment offerings. For the next few months, I'll be testing a new feature, primarily aimed at weekend events and other ways to entertain yourself, your family, your visitors.
Sip + Play is your guide to fun things to do in Charlotte from Food Truck Fridays to bar crawls to events you've never experienced. I still love a party, so there also will be plenty of that.
Sip + Play will take you all over Charlotte and beyond with live event coverage on the weekends and recommendations of where to go and what to do. I'm looking forward to sharing my adventures with you. #cltevents
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