Bret Michaels w/Lita Ford/Kip Winger Thirty years ago, a much younger Bret Michaels was standing there next to Bobby Dall, C.C. DeVille and Rikki Rockett, looking sexy and yelling Look What the Cat Dragged In. Three decades later, with his Apprentice boss set to run the United States of America (more of that later), Michaels, 53, is still kind of pretty and definitely still acting like a spring chicken — or at least talking to them.
The Poison frontman just announced that the Michaels Entertainment Group would be unleashing holiday “Bretmojis” that will allow fans to text special bandana-clad emojis of his likeness to their friends. Slogans will say “Happy New Year” and “Wanna Hang?,” but not “Talk Dirty to Me” or “I Want Action” — every rose has its thorn, we guess. It’s a savvy move by the winner of The Apprentice’s third season, who had this to say about his reality show boss: “I really, truly believe, if we give him a chance, I think he's going to do a great job," Michaels told the Tampa Bay Times in a recent interview. “Obama did a good job getting it to here, and now we've got to say, Trump is going to take it from here and take it up a notch for his term — or terms." Don’t expect him to talk politics at this show where he’ll be joined by L.A.-reared ‘80s rocker Lita Ford and Winger’s very own Kip Winger. “We’re gonna play all the Poison hits,” he said in a recent YouTube video, “all the new solo hits and we’re gonna make New Years come a little bit early, okay?” (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater) INFO
YFN Lucci “I’d rather die and go to hell than live a lie.” That’s Atlanta rapper Rashawn Bennett in his new video for “Thoughts to Myself” from a February 2016 mixtape, Wish Me Well 2, released on Think It’s A Game Records (the same one putting out music from Rich Homie Quan). The 25-year-old better known as YFN Lucci doesn’t have one of the more recognizable voices in hip hop, but he’s managed to turn his high-pitched, nasally tone into something of a commodity as XXL has named Wish Me Well 2’s hit single “Key to the Streets” to their list of the year’s 50 best hip hop songs (it also peaked at no. 70 on the Billboard Hot 100). An even older song, “Wonder Why” is just as likeable, and while these club performances usually end up being late night, abridged sets that leave fans wanting more, there isn’t any reason to believe that Lucci — who enjoys particularly loyal fan support — won’t do everything he can to make sure his followers leave the club happy. (Skye, Ybor City) INFO
Mwiza Simfukwe w/Well Worn Soles/K4Cmusic These songwriter nights are the quieter side of Tre Amici at The Bunker in Ybor City, but holy shit does Mwiza Simfukwe have a great voice. The Tampa songwriter is from Lusaka, Zambia, but came to love music and guitar during his time in the Sunshine State. His bright resonator is a welcome sidekick to a clean croon, and mining through his Internet output lends itself to a lot of toe tapping, neck craning and picking one’s jaw off the floor. Sometimes someone’s love of singing just shines through the performance, and this kid definitely fits that bill. (Tre Amici @ The Bunker, Ybor City) INFO
