The Cincinnati Music Festival is back for another year with live concerts at Paycor Stadium and the Andrew J Brady Music Center this weekend.
The festivities kicked off at Brady Music Center Thursday night with a celebration of hip-hop featuring a collection of some of the genre's most pioneering and influential artists, including Scarface, Goodie Mob, The Sugarhill Gang, The Furious Five, and Young MC.
Paycor Stadium is set to host two nights of shows headlined by Earth, Wind, & Fire on Friday night and LL Cool J with special guest Toni Braxton on Saturday.
Saturday's concert also features a tribute to soul music icon and frequent Cincinnati Music Festival performer Frankie Beverly, who died in September last year. Festival producer Joe Santangelo says Beverly was a long-time fan favorite and a tough act to follow.
"I always said there was only one person who could follow Frankie Beverly and not get killed, and that was Luther Vandross," he said. "Luther could sing and follow Frankie Beverly. Nobody else could."
Vandross died in 2005.
Santangelo says he's expecting a big crowd for this weekend's concerts, which demonstrates how residents and visitors from out of town have continued to embrace the long-running festival.
"We're really lucky that people love it, and it's great the way Cincinnati and Hamilton County has been such a welcoming place, that people really look forward to coming back," Santangelo said.
Friday's concert at Paycor with Earth, Wind, & Fire starts at 7 p.m. Saturday's show also starts a 7 p.m.
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