Photo courtesy of Home Team Photography.
CukoRakko is held at Horse Pens 40 every summer, but the organizers are bringing a smaller version of the festival to Avondale Brewing this month.
CukoRakko is bringing its first annual Fam Jam within Birmingham city limits this May.
From 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on May 19, Avondale Brewing Company will be filled with live music and art, community yoga, local vendors, food trucks and other activities, like a drum circle and a didgeridoo workshop.
The Fam Jam is put on by the creators of CukoRakko Music & Arts Fest, a three-day family-friendly music and mixed media arts festival held every summer at Horse Pens 40 in Steele, Alabama. The festival has been going on for five years.
Co-creator Dawn Cassizzi said Avondale Brewing Company seemed like a perfect space for the kids-friendly day because of their open outdoor area.
“We just wanted to bring [a festival] into the city, but we still wanted it to feel like CukoRakko, with an element of nature,” Dawn Cassizzi said. “We could kind of duplicate it in a smaller scale within the city.”
There will also be a “late-night” set for community members that are 21 or older where guest DYNOHUNTER will play in the space above Avondale at 11:30 p.m.
The bands playing throughout the day include The Russ Liquid Test, Toubab Krewe, Steady Flow, Jimmy Lumpkin & the Revival and Barnaby Rudge, as well as a few surprise acoustic sets, Dawn Cassizzi said.
She said they plan for the event to not reach full capacity at Avondale because they want an open feel and for people to have plenty of room to lay out blankets, play with their dogs and have space for activities like hula hooping and for kids to play.
Co-creator Jamie Cassizzi said a lot of their friends stopped going to festivals when they had children, so this is their way of giving the community a safe space for families to come out and still have a full day of live music. He added that they are currently working with Mountain High to bring a mobile, kid-friendly rock climbing wall to Avondale for the day.
Fam Jam tickets are $40 for the day or $50 for tickets that include the late night set. For more information, go to cukorakko.com.
