(Brenton Wood will perform at the first-ever Summer Soul Festival at Pinto Lake County Park on Sunday. Photo courtesy of The Bicycle Music Company)
WATSONVILLE — Pinto Lake County Park is about to get its groove on.
The first-ever Summer Soul Festival will take over the park on Sunday from 1-7 p.m., with soul star Brenton Wood headlining.
The event, put on by KDUB 99.9 FM, will also double as the Taco and Chavela Festival, featuring local vendors and others across the state competing for the title of best taco.
Joining Wood is a lineup that includes The Cover Girls, Delfonics, Backyard Blues, Nyreay and Rodney O.
KDUB Program Director Joel Mijares Jr. said the event will feature a “powerhouse of a lineup.”
“I don’t think there’s ever been a concert put on with this caliber of talent in one show in Watsonville,” he said.
Wood is most known for his 1967 hits “The Oogum Boogum Song” and “Gimme Little Sign,” which propelled the then-Compton resident to international fame.
Mijares said ticket sales have been strong, with people from as far away as Sacramento and Visalia planning to attend. A tour bus from Fresno will also be shuttling people to the festival.
“We’ve been having such a great positive reaction from people in town, and we’re getting a huge reaction from everybody in California,” he said.
Ten different taco vendors, from the local area and across the state, will be competing in eight different categories. All will be hoping to impress what Mijares calls a “celebrity” panel of judges, including Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo and Watsonville City Councilman Felipe Hernandez.
Chavela vendors will also be serving up their drinks. A chavela, which Mijares likens to a “Mexican Bloody Mary,” is typically made with tomato juice mixed with beer and seasoned with hot sauce.
KDUB 99.9 FM is nearing its third year on the air. It plays a variety of Mexican country music, Rancheras and more, as well as local bands and evening shows ranging from reggae to electro, old school, freestyle and more.
The station also recently launched an oldies show on Sundays at 8 p.m., with Mijares as the host.
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The Summer Soul Festival will be held Sunday from 1-7 p.m. at Pinto Lake County Park, 757 Green Valley Road in Watsonville.
Tickets, which are $30 in advance, can be purchased at Exitos Latinos, 1420 Freedom Blvd., Pasillas Tires, 92 Airport Blvd., or online at Eventbrite.com. Tickets are $40 at the gate. Children 12 and under are free.
