Margarita Wars is coming – Get your tickets here!

Cory Branan leads list of 25 concerts happening in Tampa Bay this weekend

Floozies, Bar-Kays and more on tap.

By Ray Roa , Stephanie Powers and Josh Bradley on Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 9:40 pm

Nicole Kibert/elawgrrl.com

Cory Branan

Concert cancellations are here to stay, but one scene’s loss is another’s gain, and that’s what’s happening on Friday in Tampa Heights when Memphis alt-country sweetheart Cory Branan plays a donations-accepted show at a local shuffleboard bar and restaurant.
“Cory's show in Georgia was canceled, so the good folks at Shuffle are taking a risk and opening their welcoming backyard stage for the evening,” promoters, who booked the show today, wrote.

Branan—no stranger to Tampa—is asking for $10 donations to help offset the money he lost when his Valdosta gig ate shit, and an opener is to be determined.

The 46-year-old whose country and punk songs have been covered by Jason Isbell, Frank Turner, Laura Jane Grace, Craig Finn and more hasn’t done any writing during the plague, but he told the Spokesman that he’s got about 50 songs ready to be recorded.

Hope we hear some in the Shuffle backyard. See the best live music happening this weekend below.

Friday, Jan. 14

Cory Branan (Shuffle, Tampa)
The Floozies w/The Sponges (Cuban Club, Ybor City)
Jethro Tull’s Martin Barre Band (Central Park Performing Arts Center, Largo)
The Mavericks w/Sweet Lizzy Project (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
Winter Jam 2022: Skillet w/Tauren Wells/KB/Colton Dixon/I Am They/NewSong (Amalie Arena, Tampa)
Vinny Virgo Album release w/Sam E. Hues/Ari Chi/Pigsonviyl/DJ Qeys (Hooch and Hive, Tampa)

Slideshow

22 Tampa Bay rappers to watch in 2022

Brilly Asher Asher has always been a Florida boy. Born in Jacksonville but raised in Tampa, he's well-known for his versatile style and trippy visuals. Music has always been his passion. Asher remembers his brother being the first to put him on to rap, suggesting artists like Kanye West and Jay-Z. They used to freestyle at the house, and Asher started writing his own raps at a young age. His rap name comes from his mom, who used to call him "Brilly Boy," a nickname derived from his real name, Gabriel. His mother passed away when he was 12 years old, which impacted him and inspired him to create music. Asher has been releasing music since at least 2016 but didn't start commanding attention until 2017 when he dropped his first official music video for "Toonami Flow." The clip opens with a fun track inspired by Asher's love of anime and cartoons. He drops witty lyrics throughout and references shows like "Pokémon," "Yu-Gi-Oh!" and "Dragon Ball Z." Halfway through the video, the colorful visuals and animated lyrics come to a halt as a second track, "Dead Ninja," seamlessly begins. Rapping against a red background, Asher spits bars about Black Lives Matter, police brutality, corrupt politicians, and more. Finally, the video closes with a montage of clips, both old and new, that show the continuing struggles of Black Americans. The video is powerful and impressive, especially coming from a young artist who at the time, didn't have a lot of music out. But Asher didn't take advantage of the momentum in the wake of the video. Instead, he stopped making music for three years. In 2020, he came back full force with "Traumatized," which explained to his fans that he had been in a consuming relationship for the duration of his silence. Since then, he hasn't stopped, crooning on his dreamy 2020 single "Moon and Back" and releasing two projects last year. He's already working on another EP, 3-P3AT, which will feature three new songs he hopes to release early this year.

Zhalarina A true Tampa talent and overall gem. Not only is Zhalarina a rapper, she is also a playwright, actor, music composer, and so much more. Being a creative has always been a part of who Zhalarina is—and where she comes from. Her mother is a writer, her father a visual artist, and her uncle a rapper. She developed an interest for the genre at a young age, having seen Da Brat and TLC on TV. Soon, the multi-talented artist wrote her first rap at 11 years old. As her writing progressed, she ended up entering a slam poetry competition and winning. This introduced her to a whole passion that she would not have discovered had she not taken that leap of faith. She soon learned about the University of Wisconsin-Madison's First Wave, a theater program that integrates hip-hop. There, she ended up creating The Light, with PBS Wisconsin, an autobiographical story told through three music videos. She wrote, acted in, and produced the whole show—and her hard work paid off. She ended up winning an Emmy in the Chicago/Midwest region. That's not the only acclaim Zhalarina received. For NPR's Tiny Desk Contest she submitted her song "Lala." Although she didn't win the contest, NPR highlighted her and her song as a "stand-out entry." Zhalarina's raps are witty, quick, catchy, and make you want to jump out of your seat to bop around. She likes to have fun with the content of her music and since is wildly imaginative—you never know what to expect. A year ago she released "Good Yawning," a song in which she impersonates 12 female rap artists and their respective styles. She nails the styles of MC greats like Queen Latifah, Missy Elliot, and Lauryn Hill, but also aces the new-age mic queens like Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, Chika, and Rico Nasty. Another impressive record was "Tampa," a bouncy 2019 hit dedicated to her hometown. Her confidence on the track helps to crack an inevitable smile, and her rhyme work is slick and smart, integrating a Southern accent and lyrics that talk about being from the "flirty dirty, that scurry dirty." The song has over 5,000 plays on Spotify. "It was my most ambitious song at the time—I got to celebrate women in hip-hop, past and present," Zhalarina says. "I shot, directed, and edited the music video myself. It was a passion project and I was proud of how it came out." She just recently dropped her first album, Again, which features the three mentioned tracks as well as 14 other songs. But don't think that that's all for the busy artist, she's eyeing a summer release for her second album.

Big Baby Scumbag Perhaps one of the biggest modern talents to come out of Tampa Bay, Big Baby Scumbag has carved out a sound and aesthetic that resonates with his audience. With over 106,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, he truly has found his crowd. He has a trashy Southern aesthetic that his fans have come to love: think camouflage apparel, dirty Timbs, socks that say "Eat Shit," and plenty of cheap beer and Publix. His sense of humor and love of pop culture is another reason listeners can't get enough. Whether he's dropping a freestyle inspired by "Squid Game," Tom Brady, punching coronavirus in the jaw, or a fun single like "Trappin' Out the Krusty Krab," he always brings the energy and witty references to the table. Raised all of his life in Tampa, Scumbag first got into rapping through a friend from middle school. The friend had a rap group called Scumbag World and encouraged Scumbag to join it and rap with them. At first he was apprehensive, but once he started rapping he realized he had a knack for it. He dropped his first official song, "Tha Trenchez," in 2015 and received so much positive feedback that he was able to book tours and shows just off of the one song alone. Soon after was a song called "Jelly" and before he knew it he was performing at Rolling Loud in Miami in 2016. WorldStarHipHop would go on to debut numerous music videos of his around 2018, leading to even more of a boost in popularity. He has since released too many singles to count, more than a handful of entertaining freestyles, and six albums. His favorite work to date is 2020's Big Baby Earnhardt, named after NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt (Scumbag constantly rocks NASCAR apparel and has been a fan for years). "It's my favorite mainly because of the head space that I was in as an artist throughout the process of recording those songs. Also the stories and context of the songs," Scumbag says. "What artist do you know that has both Lil B and Project Pat on the same album?" Although he considers Big Baby Earnhardt to be a "perfect album" he says that he has plenty more exciting music on the way. He is currently working on a few projects for the upcoming year that will see him experimenting with new sounds and a "hell of a lot of collaborations." Can't wait to see what Big Baby's got cookin'—especially if it's in the air fryer.

Nico Sweet Sweet knows how to draw listeners in. Her style can be compared to the likes of Tierra Whack and Rapsody as she raps with rhythm and precision over effortlessly chill beats. She began consistently releasing music in 2018 and has 17 singles available on Spotify. Although she has yet to drop an EP or album, her singles have been more than enough to get her noticed. Even fellow Florida rapper T-Pain came across two of her songs while on his Twitch livestream and loved them. The two songs T-Pain stumbled upon are some of her most popular to date. "Nah Nah" came out in 2018 and has over 11,000 listens on Spotify, while "Mmhmm" which debuted last year has over 7,000 streams. Sweet says "Nah Nah" is still her favorite song to date, adding that "The energy that track creates...people are always ready to scream back the hook! I love the fact that I have a song that can transcend over time. We have so many trendy, short-lived songs out today and that's dope—but for me, I'm blessed to say my music is more than that, does more than that." She doesn't have a project coming up yet, at least not at the moment, but Sweet's still been working at her craft everyday by "working on a lot of features, singles, and mini videos." She's also been performing all around Tampa Bay including local open mics.

Click to View 24 slides

Saturday, Jan. 15

A Tribute To Owen Meats: Chris and Jesse Martin w/Lou Collazo/Jeremy Gloff/Vince Longo/Justen Cimino/Shae Krispinsky/Same Day Delivery Orchestra/David Kibby/Scott Miller/Marc Ganancias/John Nowicki/Pete Nuffer/Jeff Brawer (Shuffle, Tampa)
Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival: The Bar-Kays w/Jane Eugene (Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, Tampa)
Chlorinefields w/Witch Hiatus/Corporate Guest (Hooch and Hive, Tampa)

Friends and collaborators mourn loss of Tampa music scene staple Owen Meats: A tribute concert is scheduled for this weekend in Tampa Heights.

Sunday, Jan. 16

Allen Stone (Tampa Theater, Tampa)
Jeremy Gloff And Friends 1st Annual "Feed The World Together" Show (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Judy Collins (Bilheimer Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
Keith Sweat (Hard Rock Event Center at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Tampa)
Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival: Erica Campbell w/Euge Groove (Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, Tampa)

Interview: Before Clearwater concert, Judy Collins shares the secrets of life and how to play a show in The Villages: She plays Capitol Theatre on Jan. 16.

Wednesday, Jan. 19

Baroness (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Mood Lighting: DJ Cub (Hooch and Hive, Tampa)

Also playing

Codd Dubz w/Jeanie Friday, Jan. 14. 10 p.m. Free before 11 p.m., if on guest list. The Ritz, Ybor City

Willy Porter Friday, Jan. 14. 7:30 p.m. $20-$30. Hough Hall at Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg

Jordan Esker & the 100% w/Noan Partly/Blake Daniels & co. Saturday, Jan. 15, 8 p.m. No cover. Green Bench Brewing Co., St. Petersburg

Lee Foss Saturday, Jan. 15. 10 p.m. $15-$20. The Ritz, Ybor City

Pet Lizard w/Fantastical Tigers/Kid Loki Saturday, Jan. 15. 8 p.m. $10. Crowbar, Ybor City

Puddles Pity Party Saturday, Jan. 15. $37.50-$135. Bilheimer Capitol Theatre, Clearwater

Pink Martini feat. China Forbes Tuesday, Jan. 18. 7:30 p.m. $42.50-$69.50. Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg
Alaska Thunderfuck Thursday, Jan. 20. 7 p.m. $20-$249. Crowbar, Ybor City
Bruce Dickinson (spoken word) Thursday, Jan. 20. 7:30 p.m. $34.50-$59.50. Tampa Theatre, Tampa

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About The Authors

Josh Bradley

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Email Josh Bradley

Josh Bradley is Creative Loafing Tampa's resident live music freak. He started freelancing with the paper in 2020 at the age of 18, and has since covered, announced, and previewed numerous live shows in Tampa Bay. Check the music section in print and online every week for the latest in local live music.

Stephanie Powers

Contact Us

Freelance contributor Stephanie Powers started her media career as an Editorial Assistant long ago when the Tampa Bay Times was still called the St. Petersburg Times. After stints in Chicago and Los Angeles, where she studied improvisation at Second City Hollywood, she came back to Tampa and stayed put.She soon...

Ray Roa

Read his 2016 intro letter and disclosures from 2022 and 2021. Ray Roa started freelancing for Creative Loafing Tampa in January 2011 and was hired as music editor in August 2016. He became Editor-In-Chief in August 2019. Past work can be seen at Suburban Apologist, Tampa Bay Times, Consequence of Sound and The...

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