It was fun. Monarchs Stadium makes that part easy. There were some Mexican Wrestling matches that were beyond entertaining. I'm not a wrestling fan, but the level of ridiculousness added with a few physically impressive moves made the crowd get loud. But the main stage was the deal. Wennely and Selekto Show had the best singer by far. Wennely is a star.
I hope others will see that as her career progresses. People are enchanted by the strong voice that comes from a petite frame. How is that possible? She meets everyone with a joy and innocence that turns them into fans. She speaks perfect English without an accent and switches to Spanish when that is the thing to do. Stranded In The City are hard working Kansas City heroes. They move from style to style with all the energy you can imagine. The crowd loved them.
The highest energy came from Chicos de Barrio. 14 folks on stage in a rhythmic mixture that had all of the crowd wanting more. If you have ever seen a Junkaroo in the Bahamas, you have the feel of what was coming off that stage.
Los Lonely Boys were the big name with the big sound. They went through their set with the skill of guys that have done it for years. They held "How Far Is Heaven" for the encore and stretched it for 15 minutes of dancing, jamming happiness. "Are you glad to be alive, Kansas City?"
The new festival on the Kansas City music landscape was successful and will be a pretty safe bet for another run next summer.
