Taking Flight Festival

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THURSDAY, MARCH 26
7:00 p.m. / Gates open at 5:30 p.m.
By Invitation Only

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CarMax Park will host Taking Flight Festival presented by 804Live, the first concert at the new multi-use entertainment venue, on Thursday, March 26, featuring Big Daddy Kane, Tone Loc, Steve Earle, Reckless Kelly and Richmond's own, Butcher Brown.

The evening will celebrate the people who helped bring CarMax Park to life, including construction workers, architects, designers, sponsors, community partners and Flying Squirrels ticket members who supported the project from the beginning. 

The event is being produced through the Flying Squirrels’ events platform, 804Live, part of a broader vision to make CarMax Park a year-round destination for entertainment, culture and community gatherings. Unlike most new ballparks, which traditionally conduct their first operational test with a baseball game, the Flying Squirrels are taking a different approach, opening the venue with a concert celebration honoring the community that helped build it.

“Before the first pitch is ever thrown at CarMax Park, we wanted to take a moment to say thank you,” said Lou DiBella, Managing Partner of the Richmond Flying Squirrels. “This ballpark was built by an incredible group of people: construction workers, designers, partners, and fans who believed in this project from the start. ‘Taking Flight Festival’ is our way of celebrating them and welcoming Richmond into its new home.”

In addition to invited guests, a group of fans who entered the Opening Night Lottery will be selected to attend, making the festival one of the most unique preseason events in Minor League Baseball.

The festival will also serve as a full operational rehearsal for the stadium, allowing the Flying Squirrels and 804Live teams to activate every component of the new venue ahead of the first game. Attendees will be among the first to experience CarMax Park’s new concessions program and sample the ballpark’s food and beverage offerings.

The evening will also feature a special Hot Stove program, replacing the club’s traditional offseason Hot Stove event. With hundreds of guests expected to attend, the gathering is projected to become the most attended Hot Stove event in Richmond baseball history.

Due to the late-night concert atmosphere, fans are discouraged from bringing children under the age of 13.

The Taking Flight Festival marks the first chapter in the life of CarMax Park, a ballpark built not only for baseball, but for the city of Richmond.

Big Daddy Kane is a GRAMMY Award-winning rapper and actor who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. A Brooklyn, New York M.C. who undisputedly defined the term “lyricist” in the world of hip-hop by introducing a lyrical ingenuity to a genre that had not yet been heard before, Big Daddy Kane proved that he was not only a dynamic M.C., but demonstrated his appeal by combining innovative live performances with choreography, theatrics and a tailored look that have become his trademarks. BDK revolutionized hip-hop fashion and the way hip-hop shows were and are performed.

Tone Loc soared from obscurity into pop stardom in 1989 when his hoarse voice and unmistakable delivery made the song "Wild Thing" (using a sample from Van Halen's "Jamie's Cryin'") a massive hit winning GRAMMYs and countless other awards. The song “Wild Thing” was co-written by Marvin Young, better known as Young MC, as was the second single smash, "Funky Cold Medina." The album "Loc-ed After Dark" became the second rap release ever to top the pop charts and one of the most popular of all time.

Steve Earle is one of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters of his generation. A protege of legendary songwriters Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark, he quickly became a master storyteller in his own right, with his songs being recorded by Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris, The Pretenders and countless others. 1986 saw the release of his record, “Guitar Town,” which shot to number one on the country charts and is now regarded as a classic of the Americana genre. Subsequent releases like “The Revolution Starts...Now” (2004), “Washington Square Serenade” (2007) and “TOWNES” (2009) received GRAMMY Awards.

Reckless Kelly has tied Austin rock and cowboy poetry together seamlessly for more than 25 years, evolving from a barnstorming Idaho outfit into a coast-to-coast torchbearer for independent Americana. Over more than two decades, the band has released 10 studio albums and two live albums, toured internationally, and established the annual Braun Brothers Reunion festival as a three-day cultural bellwether for Challis, Idaho. Perhaps most importantly, they have earned the enduring respect of their musical peers across the Texas, Red Dirt, and wider Americana landscapes.

Butcher Brown pulses from the nerve center of Jellowstone Studios in Richmond, VA, taking careful note of jazz history while throwing caution to the wind. Their signature vibe seamlessly blends jazz with hip-hop, funk, rap, rock, and soul—honoring each genre while simultaneously challenging traditional musical boundaries. The result is their most exciting collection of tracks to date. The group features Tennishu, Morgan Burrs, Corey Fonville, Andrew Randazzo, and DJ Harrison.