Free Tampa Riverfest to have hip-hop legends as headliner, new activities

The Tampa Riverfest is a month away and organizers have announced big plans, including Grammy-winning hip-hop group Arrested Development as the musical headliner, a bigger market of local vendors, and local artists who have been enlisted to add works to the increasingly popular lighted lantern parade.

Organizers have for the first time partnered with the Gasparilla Music Festival, and they’re bringing the multiplatinum hip-hop legends on board for the free festival along the Riverwalk. Arrested Development’s critically acclaimed debut album “3 Years, 5 Months and 2 Days in the Life Of...” earned them hip-hop’s first Grammy for Best New Artist in 1993. They will perform on Saturday, May 4, at 8:30 p.m. on the main stage at Curtis Hixon Park.

This is the eighth year for the festival that celebrates Tampa’s iconic Riverwalk. The May 3-4 event is produced by Friends of the Tampa Riverwalk, and it has grown each year. It drew an estimated 20,000 people last year when it expanded to include a TacoFest, a market of independent vendors and saw even more interest in the popular lantern parade.

This year, Tampa Bay Markets will sponsor Riverfest Market for the first time, featuring at least 30 local vendors who will offer even more locally made goods and wares.

And the lantern parade, “which is quickly becoming a Riverfest favorite,” will have three local artists who have been commissioned to create intricate designs that will join the colorful lanterns that attendees will be invited to create, an announcement said.

Do-It-Yourself lantern kits can be purchased online from Friends of the Tampa Riverwalk or in person at the Unlock Tampa Bay Visitors Center at 201 N. Franklin St. for $20-$25. On April 15 and 25, lantern-making workshops will be held at Armature Works from 6 to 8 p.m. The cost is $35 and covers supplies, instruction and light refreshments. Online registration for the workshops is required at eventbrite.com.

Most of the Riverfest events are free, though there will be $15-$20 wristbands sold for samples at Friday night’s Taste of the Riverwalk that will showcase the variety of dining options available in downtown Tampa. There will also be sampling wristbands sold for Saturday’s TacoFest that will have a selection from local restaurants including Jotoro, Lona, Salt Block Catering and Streetlight Taco.

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Saturday’s festivities kick off at 11 a.m. with the ever popular Florida Wiener Dog Derby. This year’s theme honors Star Wars (as in “May the 4th be with you”). There’s also live music on the main stage starting at 11 a.m. Meanwhile, at Water Works Park, the Urban Kai Paddle Invasion on Saturday will have paddleboards, surfskis (long kayaks) and outrigger canoes racing either a 2-mile or 6-mile course. That will be followed by a donation-based yoga class at 9:30 a.m. on the lawn at Armature Works.

Starting at 4 p.m. Saturday, spectators can turn their attention along the water to a water ski show by the Tampa Bay Water Ski Team. They’ll do aerial tricks during a 45-minute water show. The night will end with the concert and the lighted lantern parade at 8:30.

For tickets, signups and a schedule, visit thetampariverwalk.com.