Napier Becomes Hip-Hop Capital as Nelly and Stars Prepare for Festival

If you want to ride with Nelly, you may not have a better chance.

The American rapper is expected to arrive in Napier ahead of Thursday’s Juicy Fest, along with many other high-profile hip-hop and R&B stars.

Ne-yo, Ja Rule, Bow Wow, Xzibit, Chingy, Pretty Ricky, Mya, Lloyd, and Twista all came to town to celebrate Park Island’s 2018 event for what is shaping up to be one of the region’s biggest musical events of the year. Illuminate the stage. .

Juicy Fest will visit nine venues in New Zealand and Australia throughout January. Napier was chosen for the first show.

Juicy Fest promoter Glen Meikle said he expects between 9,000 and 10,000 for the Napier show.

“We are thrilled to launch the Juicy Fest Tour in Napier,” he said.

“Napier was chosen for the tour because of what the place and people had to offer. [and] We wanted to bring this tour to a center that is often missed for festival type shows. ”

Artists will arrive in Hawke’s Bay at different times this week, and Meikle said, “They want to see as much of the area as possible.”

He said most of them were new to Hawke’s Bay.

The stage and facilities at Tremaine Field, Park Island are currently being set up and the show will take place Thursdays from 1:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

Tickets are still available, general admission is $209, and can be purchased from the festival’s website.

“Napier is a fascinating place and has a lot to offer, and we want to showcase the city as widely as possible,” he said.

“These artists have tens of millions of followers around the world on social media, so the potential is great.”

The 30km/h speed limit will be relaxed around the festival on Thursday, and Clyde Jeffrey Drive, Westminster Avenue and Prevensen Drive will be closed from 9pm to 11pm that evening to send festival goers home.

The next stop after Juicy Fest is Tauranga on Friday.