The Big Fresno Fair has announced the following entertainers as part of the 2021 Table Mountain Concert Series in the Paul Paul Theater presented by Coors Light and Toyota: Anthrax, Young the Giant, Chris Tomlin, Midland, Nelly and Blanco Brown.
This is the first round of entertainment announcements with more to follow to fill the 12 nights of the 2021 Big Fresno Fair. Tickets have already opened to the general public.
Anthrax – Wednesday, Oct. 6 | Ticket Prices: $42, $32, $22
Formed in 1981 in New York, Anthrax has evolved to become the living embodiment of America’s hi- top wearing, riff-spitting, ear-thrashing answer to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. The group, with sales of over ten million records, has performed alongside other Big Four thrash metal bands such as Metallica, Slayer and Megadeth. With the band consisting of five members, each member contributes ideas and suggestions to every song, giving their own unique creativity and chemistry to their music. Drummer Charlie Benante makes early writing inroads with foundation riffs and other ideas; rhythm guitarist Scott Ian has a very particular way of incorporating his intense lyrical ideas into the band’s music; Bello has proven to be a very talented melody writer, something that has helped set the band’s music apart from others in the same genre; Belladonna crafts his vocals to best utilize that soaring voice of his; and guitarist Jon Donais brings crushing leads. In the end, the five bring it all together to create what simply is Anthrax music.
Young the Giant – Thursday, Oct. 7 | Ticket Prices: $62, $52, $47
Young the Giant recently released their fourth album, Mirror Master, with sounds of a layered meditation on identity in modern life. Mirror Master arrives as a continuation of Young the Giant’s Home of the Strange, a 2016 album that found members shredding light on their shared experience as immigrants of first-generation Americans. The band wanted to create a genre-defying and dynamic album, one that transforms the complexity of its themes into music with a mesmerizing quality. Opening track and fan favorite “Superposition” swiftly climbed the Alternative Radio charts and eventually held the No. 1 position for multiple weeks. With the release of Mirror Master, Young the Giant hopes to offer not only freed honesty, but the inspiration and encouragement to help listeners take charge of their own narrative. Along the way of their rise to fame, Young the Giant has headlined sold-out shows at venues such as The Forum, Radio City Music Hall, The Greek Theatre, and Red Rocks Amphitheatre, in addition to making main stage appearances at music festivals such as Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits, Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Governor’s Ball, and many more. With just shy of 1 billion streams and widespread acclaim, their impact only continues to grow with each subsequent release as they continue to evolve in their music.
Chris Tomlin – Tuesday, Oct. 12 | Ticket Prices: $42, $32, $22
It is estimated that 20-30 million people across the world sing one of Chris Tomlin’s songs every week in church services in nearly every language. Time magazine heralded him as the “most often sung artist in the world” as his music has inspired and uplifted an entire generation of believers. Along the way, Tomlin has scored 17 No.1 singles at radio, placed 29 top 10 hits (more than any other Christian artist), sold more than nine million albums with 4.5 billion career global streams, earned a Grammy, three Billboard Music Awards, more than 25 Dove Awards, became a two-time BMI Songwriter of the Year honoree and an ASCAP Songwriter of the Year. In 2016, he was named one of only four artists ever to receive the Sound Exchange Digital Radio Award for over one billion digital radio streams, alongside Justin Timberlake, Pitbull and Garth Brooks. Tomlin is also the first Christian artist to reach the Billion streams threshold on Pandora and was presented with their Billionaire award. In 2020, Tomlin released Chris Tomlin & Friends, a 13-song project featuring him with some of today’s biggest country music artists including executive producers Florida Georgia Line, Lady A and Thomas Rhett and many more. In July 2021, Tomlin released a companion EP with three new songs featuring Tyler Hubbard, Jimmie Allen and Russell Dickerson.
Midland – Wednesday, Oct. 13 | Ticket Prices: $62, $52, $47
Academy of Country Music Award winners, Midland, from Dripping Springs, Texas, features lead vocalist Mark Wystrach, guitarist/vocalist Jess Carson and bass player/vocalist Cameron Duddy. Since releasing their debut album On the Rocks in 2017, Midland’s blend of ’70s country-rock song structures and tightly stacked harmonies – with a dose of country traditionalism thrown in for good measure – have brought the group two Top 5 hits on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (“Drinkin’ Problem” and “Burn Out”); the No. 1 position on Billboard’s Top Country Album Sales chart for their sophomore album Let It Roll (Big Machine Records) and earned praise from outlets such as Rolling Stone, Variety, NPR and Entertainment Weekly. Midland’s 2x Platinum-certified chart-topping debut “Drinkin’ Problem” earned the band their first Grammy Awards nomination for Best Country Song and Best Country Duo/Group Performance; the hit single also garnered over 152 million views on YouTube to date. Midland was named New Vocal Group of the Year at the 2018 ACM Awards and was nominated for Vocal Group of the Year at the 2020 CMA Awards.
Nelly & Blanco Brown: Lil Bit of Music Series – Thursday, Oct. 14 | Ticket Prices: $50, $40, $30
Blanco Brown blurs the lines between country and hip-hop, creating a southern sound all his own that he proudly calls “TrailerTrap” inspired by two of his biggest musical influences, Johnny Cash and Outkast. His debut album, Honeysuckle & Lightning Bugs (2019), shows off the full range of its creator, who juggled multiple roles as the project’s songwriter, producer, vocalist, visionary, and multi- instrumentalist. It’s viral hit “The Git Up” (certified 11x PLATINUM across three countries) held the top spot in charts across the global and spawning nearly four billion views on social platforms. It held the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart for 12 weeks, was the top-selling digital Country song in the U.S. for 13 weeks, and secured Brown being named Billboard’s No. 1 Top New Country Artist for 2019.
Nelly will be traveling with a full live band, as well as a multi-million-dollar production package alongside artist, Blanco Brown. This unique production stems from the celebration of Nelly’s 20-year anniversary of the RIAA certified Diamond record Country Grammar.
COVID-19 GUIDELINES
Fair Management continues to work with the Fresno County Department of Public Health on health and safety guidelines for the 2021 Big Fresno Fair, as it returns to an in-person event. Mask mandates will evolve with State and CDC guidelines, in collaboration with the Health Department.
After a modified, drive-thru event in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions, the 2021 Big Fresno Fair will return for 12 days of fun and entertainment, October 6 – 17. For more information about The Big Fresno Fair, please visit www.FresnoFair.com.