Springtime in Arizona means the annual return of the Chandler Chamber Ostrich Festival. Now in its 36th year, the event found a new home at the Rawhide Western Town and Event Center but the spirit of the event- and the all-important presence of the ostriches- is still alive and well. Weekend one featured an all-star lineup of artists to round out three days of family fun, carnival rides and even pig races as fans gathered under the stars for the last mild nights of the season.
Friday night was all about the nostalgia and Rawhide’s field was crowded with fans eager to catch the mighty Kansas in action. The Midwest rockers are celebrating over 50 years of music and quite a few members of Friday’s audience have been with them since the beginning. The main stage opened with Arizona locals Znora, a trio that spent their time shredding away at the next generation’s take on classic rock. The band’s impressive musicianship, alongside singer Adrian Negrete’s powerful vocals, drew plenty of positive attention from the growing crowd and they had everyone dancing and warmed up for the headliner.
Kansas took the stage to huge cheers, with the smiles in the field reflected on the faces of the band members. They wasted no time and started the set strong with “Point of Know Return” and “Paradox”. The audience loved every minute of the show and the band had the chance to tell their own little anecdotes between songs, further endearing them to a fiercely loyal fanbase. They certainly haven’t lost a step in five decades, with their signature sound still getting the folks up and rocking out until the final encore of “Carry On Wayward Son”.
The fun didn’t stop as the weekend went on and Saturday night brought rising R&B star Ravyn Lenae to the main stage. Before her headlining performance, pop singer Izzy Escobar made her first visit to Arizona with a vibrant opening performance. Her bright smile and powerful voice made a great first impression on the audience, as more people entered the festival grounds to catch the evening’s musical offerings.
Fresh from a set at the Sips & Sounds Music Festival, Lenae made a memorable entrance as her magnetic vocals drew the crowd towards the front. After several viral moments online, she is now performing on larger stages and to larger crowds with the star power to back her up. Lenae was both sensual and charismatic on songs like “Bad Idea”, “Dream Girl” and “Candy”. Her devoted audience sang along throughout the set, giving her even more energy on her closing hit single “Love Me Not”.
Unseasonably hot weather was in store for the final day of weekend one but that didn’t stop the fun still in store for Sunday. Attendees spent the afternoon on the myriad of carnival rides at the far end of the park, taking in some local tunes at the community stage and sampling a host of deep fried eats. When the sun went down, the energy only went up for country queen Jo Dee Messina. Her white cowboy boots gleamed under the stage lights as she kicked off the hoedown by joining her band on guitar. In the middle of a set jam packed with original songs that had the crowd ready to boogie, she threw in a medley of rock, pop and country covers that showed off her powerful vocal range- it’s not every day you’ll hear Bon Jovi, Toto, Kelly Clarkson and more mashed together to perfection. Rawhide was teeming with cowboy hats and bobbed and danced along with Messina’s stunner of a set, setting the stage for the next weekend of music and entertainment in Chandler.
