Creative Loafing Tampa — October 23, 2025

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PUBLISHER James Howard

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ray Roa

Editorial

EDITOR Selene San Felice

MANAGING

FOOD & DRINK CRITIC Kyla Fields

FILM & TV CRITIC John W. Allman

IN-HOUSE WITCH Caroline DeBruhl

CONTRIBUTORS Josh Bradley, Jani Burden, Marty Clear, Gabe Echazabal, Michael Fritz, Colin Wolf

PHOTOGRAPHERS Dave Decker, Marlo Miller

FALL INTERNS Alisha Duroiser, Sophia Lowrie, Emily McLaughlin

(apply for spring by emailing clips and a resume to rroa@cltampa.com)

Creative Services

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Jack Spatafora

GRAPHIC DESIGNER Paul Pavlovich

POLITICAL CARTOONIST Bob Whitmore

ILLUSTRATORS Dan Perkins, Cory Robinson

Advertising

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Anthony Carbone, Dan Winkler

CLASSIFIEDS MANAGER Jerrica Schwartz

Events and Marketing

MARKETING, PROMOTIONS AND EVENTS DIRECTOR Leigh Wilson

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MARKETING, PROMOTIONS AND EVENTS COORDINATOR Kristin Bowman

Circulation

CIRCULATION MANAGER Ted Modesta

Chava Communications Group

FOUNDER, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Michael Wagner

CO-FOUNDER, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER

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VP OF OPERATIONS Hollie Mahadeo

DIRECTOR OF AGENCY SERVICES

Kelsey Molina

ART DIRECTOR David Loyola

DIGITAL OPERATIONS COORDINATOR Jaime Monzon

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EDITORIAL POLICY — Creative Loafing Tampa Bay is a publication covering public issues, the arts and entertainment. In our pages appear views from across the political and social spectrum. They do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher.

Creative Loafing Tampa is published by Tampa Events & Media, LLC, 633 N Franklin St., Suite 735. Tampa, Florida, 33602.

The physical edition is available free of charge at locations throughout Tampa Bay and online at cltampabay.com. Copyright 2023, Tampa Events and Media, LLC.

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Swine & Shine: A New Culinary Tradition at Fenway Hotel

At Fenway Hotel in Dunedin, food has always been a centerpiece of community and culture. This fall, that spirit takes center stage with the launch of Swine & Shine: Fenway’s First Annual Boucherie, a bayfront celebration where every ticket also supports Metropolitan Ministries. On Sunday, November 9, from 2-6pm, guests can indulge in whole-hog traditions, live music, and neighborly hospitality, knowing the joy of the day reaches beyond the lawn and into the wider Tampa Bay community.

A Tradition Reimagined

The boucherie, a Louisiana Cajun custom, is a communal event where families and friends gather to share in the preparation of a hog and enjoy the bounty together. At Fenway Hotel, Executive Chef Clayton Parrett—named Creative Loafing’s 2025 Best of the Bay Chef in Dunedin/ Clearwater—reimagines this tradition with a modern Florida twist. Having honed his craft throughout Louisiana, where he studied traditional French, Cajun, and Creole techniques, Chef

Clayton brings deep-rooted expertise and a passion for Southern flavors to every dish.

Guests will sample dishes from participating restaurants including Teak St. Pete, Juno and The Peacock, Birch & Vine, and Epicurean Hotel. Expect everything from slow-smoked pork and house-made sausages to inventive sides, seasonal flavors, and regional favorites. Each plate celebrates the artistry of Southern cooking while showcasing the creativity and innovation of Fenway’s culinary team.

A Feast for the Senses

Swine & Shine isn’t just about food; it’s a full sensory experience. As guests stroll the hotel’s bayfront lawn, the aroma of smoked meats fills the air, mingling with the rhythm of live performances by 6 Volt Rodeo and jazz artist Jeremy Carter. Craft cocktails and local brews add to the celebration, with tastings from Three Daughters Brewing, Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, Sazerac Company, Green Bench Brewing, Don Q Rum, Bacardi Limited, and more.

Community at the Heart

At its core, Swine & Shine is about bringing people together. Fenway has long been known as Dunedin’s “house of jazz,” a gathering place for locals and travelers alike. By launching this annual boucherie, the hotel is building on its legacy of community and creativity. Families, friends, and neighbors can gather under the Florida sky to enjoy good food, good company, and the kind of event that creates lasting traditions.

Options for

Everyone

An Annual Celebration Begins

The event is designed to be inclusive, with ticket options for every guest. General admission provides access to the full food and music experience, while VIP tickets include early entry and complimentary parking. Families are welcome too, with discounted kids tickets available for ages 14 and under, making Swine & Shine a family-friendly way to spend a fall afternoon together. Purchase now to secure early bird pricing.

This inaugural Swine & Shine marks the beginning of a new annual tradition for Fenway Hotel and the Dunedin community. By blending timeless Southern heritage with Fenway’s creative flair, the event captures the best of both worlds: honoring the past while creating something fresh, bold, and unforgettable. As the sun sets over St. Joseph Sound, guests will gather with plates in hand to raise a glass. It will be a day of food, music, and connection, made even more meaningful because it helps fuel the vital work of Metropolitan Ministries. Whether you come for the food, the music, or the company, you’ll leave with memories that will keep you shining until the next celebration.

Event Details & Tickets:

General Admission: bit.ly/BoucherieGA

VIP: bit.ly/BoucherieVIP

Kids (14 & Under): bit.ly/BoucherieChild

No faux-king way

In Tampa alone, more than 1,000 people descended upon downtown as part of nationwide “No Kings” protests to oppose a president who has surrounded himself with lemmings willing to push the country closer to a competitive authoritarianism where a leader is elected into power before eroding checks and balances. “It is relatively mild compared to some others. It is certainly reversible, but we are no longer living in a liberal democracy,” Harvard professor Steven Levitsky and author of “How Democracies Die,” told NPR last month.

Signs included some calling Trump a “Pedo King” for his connections to Jeffrey Epstein who killed himself before going to trial on sex trafficking of minors, others decrying ICE’s separation of families, and one calling the president a pendejo (“dumbass”). More continued to sound the alarm on the country’s move towards facism. This year’s Super Bowl halftime performer even entered the chat, with one protester wearing a flag that said, “Presidents are temporary, Bad Bunny is forever.” A few MAGA streamers even came out—and emerged unscathed despite the president’s assertion that folks who identify as antifascists are terrorists.

“No Kings” events were planned in more than 100 Florida cities and towns, including Miami, St. Petersburg, and Gainesville. See more photos from Tampa, and coverage from across the state via cltampa.com.—Ray Roa

do this

Tampa Bay's best things to do from October 23 - 29

John’s Pass Seafood Festival returns for its 44th year, turning Madeira Beach into the unofficial capital of Florida waterfront culture for the weekend. Fresh Gulf seafood, live music on multiple stages, arts and crafts vendors, and a packed schedule of family-friendly entertainment take over the John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk. After a few years of winter and spring festivals, the return to its classic late-October date also means the return of its popular Halloween events. On Friday night, kids can trick-ortreat throughout the village, and Saturday night, adults can compete for cash prizes in their own costume contest at the 6 p.m.-9 p.m. block party.

44th Annual John’s Pass Seafood Festival: Friday-Sunday, Oct 24-26. No cover. John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk, 12902 Village Blvd., Madeira Beach. johnspassseafoodfest.net—Sophia Lowrie

He talk pretty

The funniest memoirist of our lifetime is coming to town. David Sedaris, bestselling author of “Me Talk Pretty One Day” and many others, will read fresh stories and some unpublished work in his signature dark satirical style. “Happy Go Lucky,” the 68-year-old’s latest book of essays published in 2022, rails against the final years of the first Trump administration and reflects on the death of his 98-year-old father. You might find the lover of long walks getting his daily 21,000 steps in on the Riverwalk or hoofing it to the St. Pete Pier. Sedaris hasn’t stopped in Tampa since 2019. His closest reading last year was in Fort Lauderdale, where he chided this reporter for staying at a Hampton Inn. Hopefully, Tampa’s luxury hotels are up to snuff.

An Evening with David Sedaris: Next Thursday, Oct. 30. 7:30 p.m. $93.40 & up. Ferguson Hall at David A. Straz Center for the Performing Arts, 1010 N Macinnes Pl., Tampa. strazcenter.org—Selene San Felice

What’s that smell

A screening of Waters’ 1981 cult classic “Polyester” is on, but what makes the event even more enticing is that Sun-Ray Cinema has made arrangements to have “odorama” cards (scratch ‘n sniff cards that include different scents on them that coincide with some of the movie’s scenes) on hand to pass out before the film commences. The gimmicky, interactive prop was part of the film’s original screening presentation more than four decades ago, so it’s only fitting that Sun-Ray would resurrect this essential detail and stay true to the film’s viewing. Oh, and the film’s director and creator Waters—sometimes referred to as “the king of filth,” thanks to his sometimes shocking and off-the-wall subject matter—will be in the house, too. Partaking in the screening as part of a concept the Massetts refer to as “The Talkies,” Waters will offer commentary throughout this very special showing of the cult classic.

‘Polyester:’ Saturday, Oct. 25. 7:30 p.m. $55 & up. Sun-Ray Cinema, 12332, University Mall Ct., Tampa. sunraycinema.com—Gabe Echazabal

Clawsome

Sounds spooky

There aren’t many places where you can ride a Ferris wheel, eat funnel cake, and catch Steve Aoki and Galantis on the same night. Haunted Carnival is back at Armature Works next weekend, with a stadium-worthy lineup on the waterfront. Carnival fare also includes bumper cars, carnival games, food vendors and a children’s zone with face painting and pumpkin decorating. The vibe switches from family-friendly fair to haunted rave each night starting Friday around 4 p.m. with DJ and EDM festival sets on the main stage. Rick Ross joins Steve Aoki onstage for Friday’s headliner. Swedish dance-pop duo Galantis headline Saturday’s set, which also includes a DJ set from the late Hulk Hogan’s son, Nick Hogan. Sickick and Brice Vine finish off the celebration on Sunday. General admission starts at $6.75 without carnival rides or music festival access. For rides and music, attendees will need to purchase ride tickets and festival passes. Children under 3 enter free. VIP upgrades and reserved table options are also available. Parking is limited; ride-shares recommended.

Pied Piper’s Haunted Carnival: Thursday-Sunday, Oct. 23-26. $10 & up. Armature Works, 1910 N Ola Ave., Tampa. piedpiperproductions.com

Sophia Lowrie

It’s all Greek to me

A wise man once said, “There’s two kinds of people: Greeks, and everybody else who wish they was Greek.” Both unite this weekend at Clearwater Greekfest, one of Pinellas County’s longest-running festivals. The three-day celebration includes folk dancing and music, silent auctions, sweepstakes and, of course, food. Somebody’s yaya is cooking up gyros, souvlaki sandwiches and sticks, spanakopita, pastitsio, loukoumathes, baklava sundaes, frappes and more. Don’t eat meat? That’s ok, they’ll have lamb (and plenty of real veg options). Come hungry, leave because you need to go put Windex on your face.

Clearwater Greekfest: Friday-Sunday, Oct. 24-26. No cover. Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, 409 S Old Coachman Rd., Clerawater. clearwatergreekfest. com—Selene San Felice

That’s fair

The Florida State Fair may be the biggest show in town, but the Hillsborough County Fair is not one to be passed up. The annual 11-day event, featuring everything from tractor pulls and carnival rides to demolition derby’s and rodeos, returns to the Hillsborough County Fairgrounds in Dover, from Oct. 30-Nov. 9. Parking is free, and admission starts at $10 for adults. $1 opening day seems to have gone by the wayside, but Friday is $2 day and there’s still plenty of other deals to take advantage of, like “Car Load Night” on opening night and Nov. 6, where a car filled with eight people (legally seated with seatbelts) gets in with ride wristbands for $56.60. The demolition derby is back, along with goat yoga, bull riding shows and the truck and tractor pull. Check the website for the full roster of attractions, shows and competitions.

Hillsborough County Fair: Next Thursday, Oct. 30-Nov. 9. Hillsborough County Fairgrounds, 215 Sydney Washer Rd., Dover. hillsboroughcountyfair.com—Colin Wolf

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In with the new

It’s time to elect Naya Young to Tampa City Council.

By the time Tampa’s new District 5 councilperson is sworn in, five months will have passed since the unexpected death of Councilwoman Gwen Henderson. Both Thomas Scott and Naya Young—who emerged from a crowded election last month—admit they’ve been on the trail for a long time.

“It’s been quite, quite busy, but I’ve enjoyed it,” Scott told WMNF-Tampa last Friday. Young echoed that sentiment, adding that, “Between the forums and the meetings and canvassing and talking to people, I’ve definitely just enjoyed the journey and the experience.”

Scott, 72, told the community radio station that he doesn’t know whether he’d run for re-election if he wins the seat, saying he’s focused on the campaign and the next year-and-change in office. Young, 33, was more committal.

“I would definitely want to run again, even though it is a short amount of time. We can get in and really start some conversations and really do some good work in the 15 months, and then have another whole term so we can really, really start to move this ball,” Young—who has an undergraduate degree in culture and media communication from the University of South Florida and a master’s degree in political science from Howard University—added.

Both candidates would bring care and attention to a seat that’s been vacant for far too long, but Young offers a chance to write a new chapter instead of living in the past.

Scott, a familiar face in city politics for nearly five decades, is running on experience. He served 10 years on Hillsborough County Commission, including a long run as chairman. Scott also previously served on Tampa City Council from 2007-2011. Young is just 33 years old, but got her start in politics as a teenager when she canvassed for former Democratic Sen. James Hargrett and then former Rep. Betty Reed. Her past nonprofit work as Executive Director of Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association has exposed her not just to the realities of young people, but the struggles of their parents. “I realized in my nonprofit seat, I couldn’t necessarily change policy or condition. My families were still going home to some of the same situations, whether it be housing, whether it be transportation, or finding a good,

stable job. And so that’s why I’m running,” Young told WMNF.

Less than 6,000 voters in District 5 went to the ballot box in last month’s election—with the possibility of even lower turnout for the runoff—but interest in the race has been citywide, especially from a donor standpoint.

According to data from Hillsborough’s Supervisor of Elections, Scott’s campaign raised a total of $62,695, while Young’s only brought in $26,643. Despite the smaller dollar figure, Young had 201 individual donations while Scott had only 138. Young’s highest category of contributors is educators, who donated a combined $4,508 (about 17%), but Scott was favored by developers and contractors. At least $36,000 (about 57%) of Scott’s funding comes from those sorted into the real estate, developer, or construction categories; for Young, that figure is $2,406 (about 9%).

As residents get priced out of homes and rentals while development booms around them, Scott was asked to tell voters why they should trust him. He told WMNF that throughout his political life, “developers, realtors, ordinary people,” have given to his campaigns because of his leadership, experience and integrity. “People are supporting me because they believe Tom Scott is is reasonable, is fair, and is a person who will listen to everybody and then make a prudent decision for the community.”

John Dingfelder, a former Tampa City Councilman and public affairs program host at WMNF, said that candidates don’t always know who’s donating to them. Scott told WMNF that he had no idea who Mitchell was, adding that he’s always been, “an elected official who always fought hard for people of color.”

Asked about her lower fundraising total, Young called her haul a “small but mighty number,” adding that her campaign has been able to get a lot done with the donations.

“I think it’s just a true testament to people in the city and individuals who really just believe in wanting something new, wanting a fresh perspective—not wanting to continue going on like politics as usual,” Young said. “We need something new in the city, and I’m proud of that number.”

ELECTIONS

Tampa City Council District 5 special election

Early voting: Oct. 23-26. Election Day: Tuesday, Oct. 28 votehillsborough.gov

Former Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn, who donated to Scott’s campaign and is likely to run for a third term, was asked about the fundraising gaps between the candidates and told CL that businesses “crave Rev. Scott’s calm and stable presence.”

Scott’s donors also found ways to skirt contribution limits. Three PACs—Realtors Political Action Committee, Realtors Political Activity Committee, and Realtors Political Advocacy Committee—donated a total of $6,000. Those PACs are registered to controversial Florida attorney Emmett Mitchell IV, who the Palm Beach Post called the engineer of a year 2000 Florida felons list. “African American leaders said [the list] purged thousands of eligible blacks from voter rolls in the state and helped swing [the 2000 presidential] election to the GOP,” the paper added.

Like his war chest, Scott’s list of endorsements is loaded. The Suncoast Tampa Association of Realtors has come out in favor of Scott. Sheriff Chad Chronister, who’s embroiled in fallout from an academic cheating scandal in his department, has endorsed the former elected official, along with attorney Joseph Probasco, and more than a dozen religious leaders. Unions including the ATU, police union and AFLCIO have come out in favor of Scott along with the Florida Sentinel Bulletin Newspaper. Ana Cruz—partner of Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, and managing partner for one of the country’s most powerful lobbying firms Ballard Partners—donated to Scott’s campaign and so did Cruz’s mother, former State Sen. Janet Cruz Rifkin.

Young’s endorsement list isn’t as long as Scott, but she earned an endorsement from the Florida Rising advocacy group in the first round of voting.

“Throughout her career, Naya has remained committed to centering youth and community voices, creating spaces for meaningful dialogue, and ensuring that children, families, and communities are connected to the resources and opportunities needed for success,” the group, which donated $1,000 to her campaign, wrote. “She knows firsthand the challenges that our communities are facing. When elected, she will ensure that the voices and needs of District 5 are heard at City Council.”

She’s also endorsed by former State Sen. and Representative Les Miller, who also served as

Hillsborough County Commission Chairman. Ruth’s List has come out for Young, along with Hillsborough County’s LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus.

The latter is no surprise considering Scott’s 2005 county commission vote to ban Hillsborough from acknowledging or promoting gay pride events. Scott said his vote and the issue was related to funding, and not discrimination; Politifact rated that argument “False.” Four years later, Scott—the longtime pastor at 34th Street Church of God—did vote in favor of Tampa expanding anti-discrimination laws to include transgendered individuals, after a string of citizens, including other Black religious leaders, invoked the bible and scripture as reasons why the city council should reject the amendment.

“I believe love covers multitudes,” Scott said at the time, “this is about those who have made a decision and changed their gender and that they should not be discriminated against.”

Young has also earned the vote of fellow candidates in the race, including Crowbar owner and business leader Tom DeGeorge. In the days ahead of the first round of voting, another candidate, Ash Dudney, took the unusual step of asking his own supporters to vote for his opponent instead.

“While many candidates have their mind in the right place, and many have their heart in the right place—it is of my personal opinion and assessment that only Naya Young exhibits both qualities of heart & mind driving her to represent this community,” Dudney wrote. “Her passion has been palpable, her energy is undeniable, and her quick-witted intelligence is clear. If you want somebody who will fight for those that need it most, is willing to seek counsel from those with more storied experience, and will offer a breath of new life on the City Council dais, I believe the representative you want is Naya Young.”

Thomas Scott undoubtedly cares about the district and city at large. He’s demonstrated an ability to change his views on certain issues. But how many times will we ask a new generation of leadership to wait their turn? Naya Young is ready to serve, and she’s surrounded by a family and community that’s ready to not only pitch in, but make their voices heard whether they agree with her or not.

Tampa has an opportunity to put a familiar face back on the dais, but it’s time for this city to look forward. We trust Naya Young’s vision to do just that.

AT LAST: Thomas Scott (L) and Naya Young.
RAY ROA

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“All those recipes, all those flavors are disappearing with these restaurants. I just needed to get it out there”

RESTAURANTS RECIPES DINING GUIDES

Tasting history

Former Tampa chef saves recipes of bygone restaurants.

Tampa Bay has seen closures of many of its homegrown restaurants, but chef Eric Hipol is keeping their famous dishes alive.

In the early 2010s, Hipol was in the Tampa food scene during its salad days—Ichicoro Ramen, Datz—the start of something big, he said.

“Just seeing that Seminole Heights area, especially, just explode the way that it did… it was amazing,” Hipol told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. “But a lot of those places, they’re shutting down.”

Now based in North Carolina, where he works with a corporate dining company, Hipol is paying homage to the city that took him in by recording and sharing recipes from local restaurants that have closed or have rotated items off their menus.

Hipol’s Recipe Preservation Project is relatively new, officially starting on Sept. 28— unofficially, the day King of the Coop closed its Seminole Heights location. He got the idea from a comment in a Reddit thread of a post about the beloved chicken spot’s closure.

“I still think back to going to their original location during the pandemic, sitting in the

car eating a huge chicken sandwich until I was stuffed with tears running down my face because it was so spicy but I couldn’t put it down because it was too delicious,” a user commented. “Never had quite the same experience at the other locations.”

“My ears kind of perked up,” Hipol recalled. He realized that he had some of the restaurant’s original recipes from former employees.

“I just put it out there saying, ‘Hey, if you want the original recipes, send me a chat and I’ll get those out to you,’” he said. “Next thing you know, a floodgate opened.”

As a new Tampa chef, the now 36-year-old Hipol wrote everything down—mostly so he wouldn’t forget important recipes but also to record what he had learned from speaking with local chefs who were willing to share.

“All those recipes, all those flavors are disappearing with these restaurants. I just needed to get it out there,” Hipol said.

So far, Hipol has recovered, tested—both by him and friends without culinary backgrounds— and shared over 20 recipes paired with a mini column on Reddit.

He prefers this format over algorithm-dependent content like video, not only because he loves to write but, to him, it’s a better form of record keeping.

“I’m juggling this with a full-time job,” he said. “It’s growing, which is interesting, but I’m not capable of doing the filming, photography, and making sure the lighting is consistent throughout the day, while also trying to execute the dishes.”

Among the project’s most popular recipes is King of the Coop’s Hot Chicken and Ella’s Americana Folk Art Café’s “Henry the Loaf”—a recipe he acquired when he worked there while attending culinary school.

Nebraska Avenue, you know Ella’s was worth the wait.”

Other dishes he’s tackled are shrimp & grits étoufée and the banana cake from Fly Bar on Franklin (now Ebbe), Ella’s ribs (bloody mary not included), Capitol Tacos’ Big Kahuna, Current hotel’s watermelon and tomato salad, and pork belly from The Bourgeois Pig.

FOOD NEWS

On Reddit, Hipol called Ella’s, which closed in September 2024, a play where food, music and community came together. He praised the bold and comforting food of Chef Suzanne Crouch (who now runs Lara in Ybor City), and praised restaurant cofounders for their vision.

“Ernie Locke’s sweaty, soulful harmonica with Nervous Turkey made Soul Food Sundays unforgettable, and Melissa Deming, the true heartbeat, with a gift for breaking down the barrier between staff and guests making you feel like you belonged,” Hipol wrote. “And if you ever stood in the line that stretched down

“I want to keep on having just a connection with people, with their memories about these recipes, these places that they’ve dined at, Hipol said. “Part of our kind of local culture and history.” Hipol also wants to inspire creativity around cooking, similar to what he witnessed working as a young chef while the Tampa Bay food scene was starting to make a name for itself.

“I think that if you just keep on showing all of these ideas and everything to people, then it’s going to help grow the community,” he said. “Help create a kind of fun little competition amongst people to be able to keep on advancing and keep on exploring more flavors.”

Find @RouxedChef on Reddit to take a walk down memory lane and try some of the recipes yourself. Donations to the same profile on PayPal and Ko-fi—and @EJHipol on Venmo—help Hipol not go broke trying to bring these classic Tampa recipes back to life.

Datz all, folks
A Bay area staple closes its last eatery and more Tampa Bay food news.

Once part of a thriving local restaurant group, American restaurant Datz recently closed its last remaining restaurant. Datz’ St. Pete restaurant was located at 180 Central Ave., adjacent to The James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art. It debuted in the spring of 2019. Management posted a sign on Datz’ door last week that read: “An ending to an era! It’s been a great and memorable journey throughout the years. Unfortunately, we have finished our final chapter in our Datz story…It’s been a privilege and our pleasure throughout the years! Be well and until we meet again. Stay Datzy!”

Datz started in 2009 as a small South Tampa deli concept, but eventually evolved into a fullscale restaurant. By 2013, owners Suzanne and Roger Perry launched a restaurant group and opened sister concepts Dough, a scratch bakery, and the New Orleans-inspired Roux.

The duo also ventured across the bridge to St. Pete, opening Dr. BBQ with Ray Lampe in 2018, although the oncepopular restaurant has closed, too.

OPENINGS & CLOSINGS

The restaurant hasn’t announced a reason for its closure on any of its social media pages, although it’s listed as “permanently closed” on Google.

Datz’ South Tampa restaurant and its sister bakery Dough closed in 2023 after its property was sold to a developer. Its Riverview restaurant quietly closed its doors last year.

Over the last decade or so, Datz has also been featured on nationallyrecognized television programs like “Good Morning America,” listed on The Food Network’s “Best Of” lists and covered by large publications like USA Today, Newsweek and Time Magazine.

The local restaurant was described by its owners as “a foodie wonderland filled with bacon, cheese, and one-of-a-kind dishes,” often featuring over-the-top munchie creations and novelty items like breakfast carbonara pasta,

funnel cake fries, and meatloaf stuffed with jalapeno mac and cheese.

Its “Cheesy Todd” burger—a ground beef patty, lettuce, onions, tomatoes and pickles served between two fried discs of mac and cheese—was recently named “Best ‘Only In Florida’ Artery Clogger” in Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s 2024 Best of the Bay awards.

Noble Tavern opens on St. Pete’s Central Ave

Three years after it was first announced, Noble Tavern is finally open in St. Petersburg’s Grand Central District. The cocktail bar and restaurant at the base of the Tru by Hilton at 1650 Central Ave. combines the concepts and atmosphere of Noble Crust and Fat Beet Farm Kitchen & Bakery. While Noble Crust focuses on Southern-Italian comfort food, the Tavern specializes in shareable plates in five categories: “Veg + More, Sushi, Chicken, Seafood, and Beef + Pork.” The menu from Executive Chef Allan Armstrong will change based on the Tampabased Fat Beet Farm’s seasonal ingredients and customer demand. Current menu items include broccolini and carrots with goat cheese, chili crunch, lemon and almonds; a steak sushi roll with filet, asparagus, cream cheese, shitake mushrooms, korean BBQ sauce and spicy aioli; gulf snapper with gnocchi, chorizo, summer

vegetables, blistered tomatoes and spicy sugo. The concept was created by Noble Crust owners Jeff Strouse, TJ Theilbar, Tim Curci and Chris Sweeney in a joint venture with Anthony Menna president and owner of Menna Development & Management (MDM Inc.).

Noble Tavern is open Tuesday-Thursday and Sunday from 4 p.m.-10 p.m. and FridaySaturday from 4 p.m.-midnight. It’s closed on Mondays.—Selene San Felice

Swig brings ‘dirty soda’ to Tampa Bay

Pasco County residents can soon sip like the “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” stars at two upcoming Swig locations. The trendy soft drink chain and drive-thru opens at 25369 Sierra Center Blvd. in Lutz’s Cypress Creek Town Center on Nov. 6, and a second store in the city is already under construction, per the Tampa Bay Business Journal. It also reported that more Swigs are planned in Odessa, and St. Petersburg. A Bradenton location opened last month.

Along with its signature “dirty soda”— spiked with flavors, fresh fruits, purees, and creams (not alcohol, sorry)—Swig also offers refreshers made with flat or sparkling water, fruits, and sugar-free flavors as well as its own energy drink.—SSF

LAST DATZ: The ribbon cutting for Datz in St. Pete on June 17, 2019.
CITYOFSTPETE/FLICKR
“One of the first residencies of my career was here.”

MOVIES THEATER ART CULTURE

Big step

Dance giant Jennifer Archibald on why she’s teaching at USF.

Earlier this year, Jennifer Archibald was pictured on the cover of Dance Magazine, America’s most prestigious journal for professional dancers and choreographers. That’s a huge deal. Plenty of choreographers whom you’ve heard of, even if you don’t pay attention to dance, have never made it to the cover of Dance.

Now, just months later, Archibald is sitting in her new office at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where she’s the newest addition to the faculty of the School of Dance and Theater.

Casual fans may not understand what a huge deal this is for USF and for Tampa. Archibald is recognized internationally as a revolutionary figure in the dance. Her work spans and combines everything from hip-hop to ballet. Her USF colleagues can barely contain their excitement that they get to work alongside her every day.

“It’s impossible to talk about Jennifer Archibald without using superlatives,” Michael Foley, a professor of dance at USF, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. “She is the person of the moment right now.”

respected in the country, and has a reputation for attracting top-tier students, faculty and guest artists.

What makes Archibald so important in the dance world, Foley said, is that she blends styles and disciplines in a way that perhaps no other choreographer ever has. She hasn’t molded her work to fit the dance world’s templates; in fact, the dance world has bent to accommodate her work.

INTERVIEW

‘Reflecting’ USF Fall Dance Concert

Thursday-Sunday, Oct. 23-26. No cover Theatre one at USF School of Theatre & Dance. 3839 USF Holly Dr., Tampa. usf.edu/arts

As one local dance aficionado opined, it’s kind of like Quentin Tarantino coming to USF to teach filmmaking.

To outsiders, it may seem odd that one of the world’s most important choreographers, a Toronto native who’s long been based in New York, would end up at a state university in Florida, a state that is, at least of late, known for being less than hospitable to the arts. For Archibald, though. It seemed like a natural step.

“I have a long relationship with USF,” she told CL. “One of the first residencies of my career was here, one of my first artistic residencies. I also taught here at USF for the summer intensives through Florida. Dance Association, for about 10 years. I already knew the faculty, I know Tampa very well, so it just seemed like a good place for me as far as, y’know, working with family. It was really important for me to transition into a department that would understand my skill set.”

Besides Archibald’s personal relationship, USF’s dance program is also one of the most

“Where Jennifer sits in kind of the pantheon of contemporary concert choreography is at the intersection of so many styles and genres that she’s actually reinventing things with every piece that she makes,” he added. “She’s one of the only choreographers who can traverse hip-hop, commercial, contemporary and ballet. Her work can be in an arena at a K-Pop conference at an arena in Los Angeles, and then it can be on the stages of the National Ballet of Canada, or it can be an evening-length piece with Ballet X in Philadelphia based on ‘The Lord of the Flies’.”

Those who’ve never attended a ballet or a contemporary dance concert in their life, may have even seen Archibald’s work. Her resume includes commissions from ballet companies across the country, but also from Nike, Tommy Hilfiger, and musicians for whom she choreographed stage shows or videos.

And dance fans have seen her influence extend beyond her works. Even the most staid ballet companies, rooted in the rigors and traditions of classical form and notoriously resistant to change, are expanding their vocabulary and their repertoire, layering club and street dancing on top of ballet. And that’s largely because of Archibald.

Long-time Tampa-area dance audiences have had plenty of chances to see Archibald’s work over the years, Neophytes will get a chance later this month, when her work titled “Mirrors”is part of USF’s Fall Dance Concert on the USF Tampa campus. Works by Foley, USF dance faculty members Andrew Carroll and Bliss Kohlmyer and guest artist Saar Magal are also on the program.

Although she’s choreographed for some of the absolute best dancers in the world, and has been a long-time member of the dance faculty at Yale University, Archibald told CL she’s excited by the talent level of the USF students who will be performing her work this year.

“They’re great,” she said. “The skill set and the range is excellent, and that’s exactly what I need. I need a dancer who can play to the different genres, in execution, and it’s working. It’s working well.”

Besides setting works on her students, Archibald will also be working with them as she creates commissioned works that will appear on national and international stages.

“This is sort of my lab,” she said. “I’m going to be working on a work for a dance company in Canada, and I’m going to be coming up with the idea for my next full-length ballet. I’m working

with USF students to start building new ideas and new movement phrases.”

So, for the foreseeable future, much of Archibald’s work that appears on world stages will have its roots right here in Tampa, at USF. And her global significance in the international dance world will no doubt focus more of the dance world’s attention on the region and USF dancers as they graduate and enter professional companies.

But maybe the just-plain-cool thing is that Tampa is now home to the person who could be considered the world’s most significant choreographer.

“She doesn’t have an equal, because she’s so singular,” Foley said. “No one is doing the kind of work that she’s doing, at the level that she’s doing it. And that level is the very highest.”

EXALT! Jennifer Archibald has no equal, observers say.

FALL MOVIE SERIES

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30 | 5-8 PM

Enjoy trick-or-treating, hands-on activities, and eerie docent-led tours that uncover the darker side of the MFA’s collection, with fascinating stories behind select works of art. Wander the galleries after hours, soak in the mysterious ambiance, and uncover the hidden tales that make this night a memorable experience. Costumes encouraged—plus a friendly Halloween costume contest!

Matthias Stom (Stomer), Annunciation of Samson’s Birth (detail), c. 1630-1632, Oil on canvas, Fondazione di Studi di Storia dell’Arte Roberto Longhi, Florence, Italy

Thursday, October 23, 2025 • 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Trivia Night - Uncork Your Knowledge @ Ybor City Society Wine Bar 1600 East 7th Ave

Open to the public bit.ly/TriviaNightYbor

Friday, October 24, 2025 • Starts at 9:00 PM

Halloween Ball - Pop Punk Emo Night TAMPA by PunkNites @ The Catacombs 1909 N 15th St Suite A

Tickets - $12.51

bit.ly/HalloweenBallYbor

Friday, October 24, 2025 • 6:30 PM - 9:30 PM

Baddie Bingo: High Seas & High Heels Edition @ Gasparilla Distillery & Cocktail Bar 2102 East 4th Ave

Tickets - $12.51 bit.ly/BaddieBingoYbor

Saturday, October 25, 2025, • 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Ybor City Poetry Slam @ The Commodore 811 East 7th Ave

Tickets from $13.45 bit.ly/YborCityPoetrySlam

Saturday, October 25, 2025, • 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM

Composition in the Field - Photography Workshop @ Ybor City Museum State Park 1818 East 9th Ave

Tickets - $155.38

bit.ly/CompositionYbor

Sunday, October 26, 2025, • 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM

EMPANADA SMACKDOWN: The 7TH ANNUAL

TASTE OF LATINO Festival @ Centennial Park 1800 E 8th Avenue

Open to the public, VIP starts at $89.94 bit.ly/EmpanadaYbor

Sunday, October 26, 2025 • 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM

POiSON GiRL FRiEND (from Japan)

w/ special guests Mother Soki @ Crowbar 1812 N 17th Street

Tickets - $40.88 pgf25.eventbrite.com

Thursday, October 30, 2025 • 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Haunted Masquerade Murder Mystery at Hotel Haya X Sage Coterie @ Hotel Haya 1412 East 7th Ave

Tickets - $36.39

bit.ly/HauntedMasqueradeYbor

Friday, October 31, 2025 • 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Hallo-WINE @ Chateau Cellars Ybor

2009 N. 22nd St.

Tickets from $59.34

bit.ly/HalloWineYbor

Saturday, November 8, 2025 • 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Burgundy Grand Tasting at Chateau Cellars

@ Chateau Cellars Ybor

2009 N. 22nd St.

Tickets from $116.69

bit.ly/BurgundyYbor

& Co.

Where to Live:

Casa Ybor • casaybor.com

Casa Ybor offers unique retail spaces, office spaces, and apartment homes for rent or lease in both newly constructed and lovingly restored historic buildings throughout the vibrant National Historic Landmark District of Ybor City near Downtown Tampa, Florida.

La Union • bit.ly/LaUnionYbor

Community, connection, and culture come together at La Unión Apartments, where Tampa’s rich history and vibrant future unite. Inspired by the historic social hall once on this site, our Ybor City apartments honor that legacy by fostering bonds among residents, the neighborhood, and the area’s deep-rooted heritage.

Miles at Ybor • milesatybor.com

Step into the pulse of Tampa’s most vibrant neighborhood at Miles at Ybor, where modern luxury apartments in Tampa blend seamlessly with the rich cultural tapestry of historic Ybor City. These aren’t just furnished apartments in Ybor City – they’re your gateway to an elevated urban lifestyle that celebrates both heritage and innovation.

Corona Cigars 1523 E 7th Ave

King Corona has been a cornerstone of Historic Ybor City for over a decade. Since 1998, we’ve offered the finest handmade cigars, exceptional coffee, and much more. kingcoronacigars.co Ybor City Chamber of Commerce Gift Shop 1600 E. 8th Ave

With a wide variety of Ybor City-themed items, collectables, and apparel, you’ll be certain to find the perfect souvenir or gift! ybor.org/vic

The Commodore 811 E 7th Ave

Tampa Bay’s home for improv, sketch, and alternative comedy. commodorecomedy.com

REVIEWS PROFILES MUSIC WEEK

Coming home

Doechii told A&R to check out Tampa. Did they listen?

It’s been about 270 days since Doechii stood on the Grammy stage, accepted the award for Best Rap Album, and told the world about the city that raised her.

“There’s so many people out there who probably don’t know who I am,” the 26-year-old, whose real name is Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon, said. “I call myself the Swamp Princess because I’m from Tampa, Florida! There is so much culture in Tampa. Whenever people think about Florida they only think about, like Miami, but Tampa has so much talent. Labels, go to Tampa. There is talent there.”

As the Blake High School graduate prepares to play her biggest headlining hometown show to date—did A&R actually listen?

“Literally, the next day, I had A&Rs that I hadn’t talked to in months, maybe years in some situations, calling me being like, ‘What’s in the water in Tampa? Tell me who should I be looking at,” Randy Ojeda told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. So he sent them all his long-running Tampa Mixtape, featuring his favorite locallymade music.

Ojeda, 35, is an entertainment lawyer who helps artists negotiate record and publishing deals, plus contracts with management and labels. While he spends his hours these days helping artists get paid what they’re supposed to, he used to work as an A&R for homegrown international distribution company Symphonic.

A&R (“Artists and Repertoire”) is romanticized as the people at labels who discover artists, maybe at a club, before signing them to record contracts. The reality is that in 2025— like baseball, and any other business—data drives decision-making in the music world. Chartmetric, a tool that tracks streaming charts, social media and the box office, is now a huge part of an A&R’s thought process, for better and worse.

Ojeda notes that while he knows he can get an A&R to listen to an artist, that’s about it. “If they go any further, that’s not up to me,” he said, adding that he knows of a few artists who’ve gained traction.

Sniper2004, from Carrollwood, got big off of a TikTok sound and is distributed by Interscope. FloGo filmed a video on the Gandy Bridge; he also just sold-out his first-ever concert this

Thursday at Busch Boulevard’s Fuego VIP Lounge and is is being courted by labels. St. Petersburg’s Rod Wave, who once knocked Justin Bieber off the Billboard 200, has signed Tampa rapper Bigg 290 to his Mainstay Music Group.

Still, Ojeda concedes that he doesn’t know if there were any direct signings after Doechii’s huge night last February where she joined Lauryn Hill and Cardi B as the only non-men to win the Best Rap Album Grammy award.

Jorge Brea, founder and CEO of Symphonic Distribution, knows what it’s like to be on the ground floor when insane talent breaks and was involved with Bad Bunny when he was emerging out of the Rimas Entertainment group. Tampa’s Five 5 Studio facilitated a meeting between Brea and Doechii. Her 2020 EP, Oh The Places You’ll Go, was distributed on Symphonic, right before “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake” went big on TikTok. “I definitely remember seeing a lot of that

That’s partly because Doechii is one-of-a-kind.

“Not only is she insanely talented, but she had that artistic vision from the very, very beginning. Even her earliest self-released music videos and EPs were of a quality that is just undeniable,” he added. A&R these days is looking for artists who have great content, and who advocate and market themselves—something that might be missing from some local artists. “I think we have a lot of talented artists who write great music, but they don’t put the whole package together,” Ojeda added.

energy of wanting to do well, wanting to be a big star, but not knowing much of how to do it,” he told CL. Brea noted that Top Dawg Entertainment, home to Kendrick Lamar, quickly pounced after “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake” went viral, adding that, “I think that was ultimately the best home. I think that TDE has done a freaking amazing job.”

Brea, however, did not hear from A&Rs in hip-hop and even indie circles after Doechii’s Grammy win. There is endless quality when it comes to the artists that call Tampa Bay

home, he said, expressing appreciation that she is flying the banner for the city. But the data-driven nature of how labels sign artists today ultimately wins. “It’s not a beautiful, uplifting, empowering thing, but it’s just the reality of it,” Brea said.

Artists have more routes than ever to be independent, Brea told CL, but should make music that can get them signed, if that’s their goal. Creating super fans, and finding fans outside of the Bay area, will go a long way, too. And there are more eyes on the city now.

While A&R might be flocking to sign artists locally, Doechii’s rise did put a bit of a spotlight on what’s happening in Tampa, and opened the door for music fans to talk about producers who came up locally. Jordan Patrick is currently working with A$AP Rocky and was recently joined by Jon Batiste in the studio. Batiste recently told CL that Patrick, a Jefferson High School graduate, reminds him a lot of himself.

“You’d be amazed at how many producers in this area have platinum plaques and gold plaques and are are producing really big records for guys like Kodak Black and NBA Youngboy,” Ojeda said, citing artists like Dxntemadeit it and Nolan Griffis (aka Nullybeats).

James Wood, who runs Clearwater’s Executive Studios, has two “Madden 24” placements and even recorded with Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Ray Ray McCloud. He’s seen producers like John Lam rack up plaques for the likes of Lil Durk and Rod Wave while songwriters like Fash (aka Ryan Rivera) just submitted tracks to Drake. “He already cut the records,” Wood, who also works with Plies, added.

Jerome Grace told CL that while Doechii drove the industry to pay better attention to Tampa, there wasn’t a rush to sign artists. Grace, CEO & Head of Music Pub and the Producer Tour publishing company, said he’d like to see more unity in the local scene, but loves that artists like Famous Kid Brick are a walking advertisement for Tampa. Homegrown artists, he said, always feel like they can come back to Tampa, and he hopes that one day they’ll feel like they can’t leave because so much is happening here.

“Doechii could serve as a catalyst, but it’s up to all of us to be able to build it all out,” he added.

FLOAT LIKE A BUTTERFLY: Doechii visits her alma mater Blake High School in November 2024.

Good days

Ravyn Lenae brings ‘Birds Eye’ to Tampa arena show.

Ravyn Lenae’s superpower is standing out—a capacity she rediscovered while crafting her 2024 album, Bird’s Eye. “When I came into music, that was the rawest form of me. And I think what I was so interested in, at least with Bird’s Eye, was returning to that feeling of doing exactly what I want to do and doing exactly what feels right and comfortable for me,” Lenae. 26, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay.

Released last August, the 11-track effort is the Chicago-born singer’s most personal project yet—from the cover art, which captures the first time she dyed her now-signature red hair, to the closing track, “Days,” a song she says was originally meant to be just for herself.

This past summer, Bird’s Eye experienced a renaissance when its lead single, “Love Me Not,” went viral—catching the attention of R&B legends Mariah Carey and Kelly Rowland. Lenae later sat down with both artists for Elle magazine this month, representing what the publication called the third generation of R&B. Now touring the album for a second time and supporting a portion of pop singer Renee Rap’s “Bite Me” tour, Lenae sat down with CL ahead of the Tampa show to discuss life on the road, her inspirations and Bird’s Eye. See parts of our Q&A below, and check out the full interview via cltampa.com/music.

Bird’s Eye has been out for a little over a year and 'Love Me Not' blew up this past summer. How have you felt about the response?

Honestly, it’s been incredible to see the song kind of gain these wings, especially after almost a year, after it dropped. So I think it’s been really cool to see people connect with it and hear the things me and my team heard in the song when I finished it. So I think it’s one thing for us to believe in something and for me to think that there was so much potential with the song. And it’s another thing for the world to kind of agree with me in that way. So I think it’s been super validating for me and just my entire journey to have a moment like this.

Does the album represent anything new to you now?

I think if anything, the meaning of the album just rings so true. Still, I think there was a very clear distinction in my spirit and my intent when I started working on this album—and this went beyond music. I think there was something internal that shifted that made me want to open myself up to possibility. And yeah, I don’t know how else to explain that, I think once you kind of unlock that thing in you, all the doors just start to blow open. And that can be in romance, that can be friendships, parental relationships, and also through music and my career. So if

anything, the success of the album, “Love Me Not,” in particular, is a reward for really pushing through those mental internal blocks that I feel like I’ve been struggling with. Do you have any inspiration that you look towards when it comes to on-stage performance?

Yeah, for sure. I think I’m such a mixed bag of things that I adore. I think my first reference point was definitely Motown and just that whole time and aura of showmanship that a lot of people like Diana Ross or Chaka Khan or Minnie Riperton—those ladies—I’m heavily inspired by. Just the kind of demure stage presence was still striking. And on the other side of that, there’s a part of me that loves the Kate Bush, Cyndi Lauper quirkiness edge that they bring to their shows. So I think it’s a mix of those things. Yeah, I definitely do agree. Especially piggybacking off of what you said about the quirkiness, you have a very distinct style. I know you said you are a mixed bag, but a lot of things that you create has your distinct stamp on it. Your hair, for one, your red hair, how you sing, you have a very, very unique tone

of voice, your clothes. How did you find that? And if there is an urge to assimilate, how do you fight the urge and be yourself?

I think it’s really an ebb and flow for me. I think obviously, when I came into music, that was the rawest form of me. And I think what I was so interested in, at least, with Bird’s Eye was returning to that feeling of doing exactly what I want to do and doing exactly what feels right and comfortable for me.

I think definitely along the way, it’s so natural to look around you and see what’s working for other people and think that that has to be your path too. So I can definitely admit that there were times where I felt the pressure of just blending in. But then I think I realized that the power of me is standing out.

almost like they’re passing the mantle down to you. How did it feel to be in the room with them?

Honestly I wouldn’t ever ever ever forget that moment. I think that’s one that will stick with me forever because, one, I grew up listening to and inspired by both of them and to hear them affirm me in those ways was everything for me.

INTERVIEW

Renee Rapp w/Ravyn Lenae

Monday, Oct. 27. 8 p.m. $86 & up Yuengling Center. 12499 USF Bull Run Dr., Tampa. ravynlenae.com

And that’s where I feel like the most myself and the most colorful. So I think leaning into those intuitions about how I want to feel, how I want to sound, how I want to look is what is right. So yeah, I don’t know if there’s like a specific mood board or influence other than me following what I want to do.

You also recently sat down with Mariah Carey and Kelly Rowland this past month. How was being considered the third generation of R&B like it’s

I’m still processing that but yeah also just to be able to like be in conversation with them and hear their experiences and I don’t know if they included it in the um the interview but off camera Kelly first said that when she on her first album she put alternative songs on there and she felt like it wasn’t received that well from the label.

And then Mariah said that she has an entire alternative album that she never released because she felt like the label wouldn’t support it or that people wouldn’t like that from her. So I think in that moment it was just made clear to me that there’s been so much movement in that space for Black girls to be able to experiment freely. So I think it made me grateful that the women before me paved the way for artists like me or so many amazing Black girls who want to do whatever they want to do.

“It’s been super validating for me and just my entire journey to have a moment like this.”
1 OF 1: Ravyn Lenae’s superpower is standing out.
KENNEDI

Catch the spirit

Paul Levine talks a dozen years of Hulaween.

Throughout the years, Hulaween has remained a mainstay in Florida for its relentless commitment to both art and music alike. Easily the largest annual festival at the Spirit of the Suwanee Music Park in Live Oak, Hulaween plays host to everything from jam bands, EDM, rock, and rap. In its rapidly approaching next iteration, Suwannee Hulaween is once again preparing to transform the park into a technicolor dreamscape of sound, art, and magic.

Now entering its 12th year at its current location, Hulaween has evolved far beyond a festival—it’s become a tradition, a pilgrimage, and an essential part of Halloween weekend for many. From its immersive Spirit Lake art installations to the kaleidoscopic lineup of artists, Hulaween 2025 looks to raise the bar yet again.

Paul Levine, co-founder of Hulaween and owner of Purple Hat Productions, checked in to share what makes this year’s edition special. From fresh creative collaborations to massive production upgrades, Levine and his team continue to find new ways to make the woods come alive.

At the heart of Purple Hat Productions’ story lies the memory of Rachel Morningstar Hoffman, who died when police asked her to take part in a drug bust. Her life and spirit continue to guide the company’s mission. A dear friend to many and music lover through and through, her tragic loss inspired the creation of Purple Hat Productions. Morningstar’s legacy endures through every show, every gathering, and every moment of joy the park brings. Her passion for music and community is woven into the very soul of Hulaween, a reminder that art and love can grow from even the darkest situations. For those just getting into Hulaween, can you share a version of its history?

Jam one year. He suggested, “Well, why don’t we have Hulaween at the Spirit of Suwanee?”

And that’s kind of how it happened.

Hulaween had happened before at other locations. It was kind of the String Cheese Incident Halloween event, but once it came together with the Suwanee Music Park, it took it to a new place.

What’s the theme this year?

There’s four different costume themes, forgive me for not knowing them all off the tip of my tongue. They’re pretty elaborate. But you can find that on our social media pages.

The theme at Spirit Lake is The Radiant Veil and it has a lot to do with light and shadows and reflections and just lots of looking at the world in different ways and through different lenses. So hopefully it makes people think and come up with some really interesting stuff.

It’s different every year, what can we all look forward to at Spirit Lake in 2025?

INTERVIEW

Hulaween: The String Cheese Incident w/Goose/Illenium/Parcels/Zeds Dead/ Lszee/Joe Russo’s Almost Dead/more

It is. There’s gonna be a lot of old friends, but also a lot of new friends. I think the thing that a lot of us are really excited about is just that we’re taking the visual aspect of things over the lake to another level, with some of the finest visual artists out there creating content that will be much clearer and much, much more visible than it ever has been before.

Next Thursday-Sunday, Oct. 30-Nov. 2. $$169 & up. Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park, 3076 95th Dr., Live Oak, Florida. hulaween.com

I think that experience is going to be incredible. I think people will find that this year we spent a lot of time working on getting everything right with the volume of Spirit Lake, making sure that the sound is good for everything and not overlapping each other. I just think a lot of the flow and the logistics of things are going to be a lot smoother.

Well, it started a long time before it came to the park. I started doing shows with String Cheese Incident in Colorado. Our first year might have been ’96, maybe ‘97. We did our first show together and we’ve kept working together over the years. And so I moved to North Florida and started doing shows at Spirit of the Suwanee. We did some shows and some members of String Cheese played our events, and whenever I saw the guys, we’d talk about having the band come to play at the park sometime and maybe create some sort of annual event. I remember meeting with Mike Luba, one of their managers, in Asheville at the Warren Haynes Christmas

Well, speaking of Spirit Lake, do y’all have things like Incendia and Frick Frack coming back? I know y’all like to add new big wooden installations each year, too.

Yeah, Incendia will be back and The House Of Lost will be back. The bird houses will be back. A lot of installations that people are familiar with and plenty of new ones as well. There’s going to be some different things, not that in particular, but some other large scale installations of that sort, just a little bit different.

I’m not as intimate with that side of things this year, so I’m gonna be surprised by what we have as well.

I’ve noticed a lot of times Hulaween artists tend to blow up right after they play. Is there anyone you’re excited about in particular?

Sometimes it’s like that, and you can tell it’s coming, and then sometimes you just don’t know. Sometimes you book something and by the time it gets to Hulaween it’s a lot bigger than when you booked it. Sometimes it’s the other way around. It’s hard to say who’s blown up and who hasn’t already, you know? It’s just different in different ways. Grace Bowers is a good example of that on the band side. She’s a lot bigger now than when we booked her.

How many stages do y’all have this year?

Five stages plus performance art spaces and stuff like that.

So, you’re still with the Purple Hat Productions, right? When was the last time that Purple Hatter’s Ball went on?

Yeah, but Purple Hat doesn’t really do as much anymore. It’s been almost 10 years now so maybe something like that, ’17, ’18? I’d have to look. It’s been a few years. I miss that. I still see Margie and there’s kind of a nod to Margie and Rachel at Hula this year. One of the days is a purple day. I was going to ask if y’all still do anything related to that.

Yeah, we still make sure to give them a nod. People, I think, associate the park with her,

you know? At least through that, through the Purple Hatter’s Ball. I think people that went to the Purple Hatter’s Ball, or knew about it, kind of think about her when they come to the park. No matter what show it is.

There’s a lot of young people at Hulaween that, hopefully, can relate to her and learn from that horrible experience.

What is your favorite part as an organizer about putting on something like Hulaween?

Well, I come from very much the hospitality side of things. So it’s always satisfying for me to actually interact with and help people have the best experience that they can. Sometimes it’s helping somebody that’s stressed out about whatever, and the logistics or whatever, and I can help them through that. And then the satisfaction of working with the team and to try to help people have a great time. In the end, it’s the music. And, of course, working with artists, getting to know them, and helping them to further their careers is amazing too. There’s a lot to it. It’s usually about the team and the people you’re working with and doing things with them and seeing people thriving. That kind of stuff.

TAKE A GANDER: Looks like Goose is playing two sets at Hula 2025.
JULIANA
BERNSTEIN

THU 23

Dogpark w/Rehash After opening for The Moss last year, New York-via-Richmond rock band Dogpark gets to headline a show in support of a new single, “September,” released, well, last month, and an EP (Until The Tunnel Vision Melts ), that started streaming last March. Playing a frat-party-ready brand of indie-rock, the quintet is a certified sure thing for fans of The Strokes, Cage the Elephant, and even DJO. South Florida band Rehash— arriving with its own grunge-ish new LP, Mock (stylized all-lowercase), in hand— opens. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

Open House Conspiracy: Jimpster/ Austen van der Bleek If you’re the kind of person who treats DJs like your streaming app (you know these people, with phone on forehead), then maybe skip this show. Folks who love the idea of someone else curating an evening for them will head to St. Pete’s warehouse district for a set by Jamie Odell, aka Jimpster, the U.K. DJ who has become a tastemaking figure for fans of house music that dips into ambient, electro, soul and jazz. (Suite E Studios, St. Petersburg)

C The PACT: Poetry and Sax Benefit Concert & Showcase feat. Zeta The Babe Palladium Theater, especially its basement cabaret, is an exemplar of community. It regularly hosts homegrown talent and this week welcomes Zeta the Babe who hosts a vulnerable open-mic style narrative show that benefits The Studio @620. The gig couldn’t have come at a better time either. Just this month, the Pinellas County Commission approved $2.5 million from tourist tax dollars for the 100-year-old former church’s renovation that will cost $13 million. Palladium’s Executive Director Paul Wilborn told St. Pete Catalyst that about $10.8 million is in hand, from private donors, the State of Florida and the City of St. Petersburg.

C Suzie True w/Lychee Camp/Pigeon Chess ChewyHemphill’s Pre-Fest Party can’t accommodate every great band headed for to Gainesville’s punk-rock-rite-of-passage, so Brokenmold Entertainment stepped up to host Suzie True, a riot-grrl-approved outfit from L.A. The quartet headlines a no-cover dive bar gig where Tampa pop-punk favorite Lychee Camp and homegrown emo-folk outfit Pigeon Chess open. (The Hub, Tampa)

FRI 24

C Honky Tonk Angels: A Dyke Cuntry Affair w/DJ Easy Rider/Gemini Moon It’s a busy week of partying for local sapphics. Dyke Night St. Pete spends Halloween turning vegan hotspot Good Intentions into a

not-so-straight-up sanctum, but not before putting on the cowboy boots for a night of “cuntry” complete with assless chaps, Chappell Roan, and classic country, too. “We are channeling pink pony club meets an ol’ western saloon for the hoe-down of the century,” organizers promise. The first line dancing lesson is at 8:45 p.m. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

Pied Piper’s Haunted Carnival: Steve Aoki w/Galantis/Bryce Vine/Rick Ross/ Said The Sky/Sickick/Irie/BonnieXClyde/ Sommer Ray/more Armature Works’ fall carnival by the river is straight out of a movie, and its accompanying EDM concert rattles the windows nearby. Pretty much a South Tampa Heights tradition by now, the three-day throwdown is kind of like a Halloween-ified Sunset Music Festival with big names of the genre (in 2025 that includes Steve Aoki, Borgeous, Galantis and Sickick) joined this by rappers like “Glee Project” alum Bryce Vine and former corrections officer turned “Da Boss,” Rick Ross. Lake Worth country songwriter Ryan Montgomery— who’s opened for the likes of Morgan Wallen and Riley Green—is also among the two dozen artists coming to the field. Read more about the weekend on p. 12. (Heights District at Armature Works, Tampa)

Thrice w/Modern Color/Downward Collaborators since high school, Dustin Kensrue and Teppei Teranishi have always looked forward. Together with drummer and bassist brothers Riley and Eddie Breckenridge, Thrice’s frontman and guitarist arrived at record stores in 2000 wielding an unforgiving post-hardcore sound and cemented their place in the genre with a major-label outing, The Artist In the Ambulance that used tech-metal and emo as a bridge to the more conceptual releases that came after (Vheissu and elemental The Alchemy Index , a sprawling four-CD concept album split into two releases). Back with the second half of another two-part Horizon concept, Teranishi, Kensrue and the Breckenridge brothers return to St. Pete on something of a victory lap with Redondo Beach rock band Modern Color opening alongside Tulsa indie-emo outfit Downward. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)

SAT 25

C Doechii Tampa felt betrayed after Doechii announced a U.S. tour with no hometown date—but the Swamp Princess made everything all good last month by announcing one Florida stop. Last February, when she became the second female rapper since Lauryn Hill to win the Best Rap Album Grammy, Doechii took to the stand to tell the world that “Tampa has so much talent.” But did that lead to A&Rs tuning their radar to the Bay area and its wide array of rappers and producers? Local industry vets had some thoughts. Turn to p. 41 to see if record labels took her advice to see what was in the water. (Yuengling Center, Tampa)

C How A Sunset Sounds: Shades of Sunset w/Gina Tollese/Frikidonya/T. Couture/Ryan Rose/BlinkDaLink/DJ Lá Lunå Ryan Rose’s Ybor City party happens as the sun goes down on Seventh Avenue, and the color palette for this homecoming will match the sky above. After popping up in Atlanta, Miami, and Washington D.C., Ryan Rose is asking How A Sunset Sounds devotees to dress up in “orange, tan, white, and other sunset shades” this weekend. Per usual, the lineup is a who’s who of Florida tastemakers including Miami’s BlinkDaLink and Gina Tollese alongside local favorites (the inimitable T. Couture, Frikidonya) plus residents Rose and DJ Lá Lunå. You might get to bed at a decent time, too since it ends at 10 p.m. (1920 Ybor, Ybor City)

Lebanon Hanover w/Jim E Brown/ Ortrotasce Lebanon and Hanover are in headlines lately as the New Hampshire cities work to protect non-citizens from ICE and other anti-immigrant officials—but it’s the European electro duo crossing borders into Tampa. For cold wave fans, Larissa Iceglass and William Maybelline go back nearly two decades to a split cassette with La Fete Triste. On the road supporting a heavy new album about mental health and the world at large ( Asylum Lullabies ), Lebanon Hanover is supported by U.K. producer and poet/satirist Jim E. Brown (“I Urinated on a Butterfly”) and the Bay area’s own lord of analog synth, Ortrotasce. (Orpheum, Tampa)

continued on page 48

C CL Recommends
Poison Girl Friend

continued from page 47

C Wounded Touch w/High Pressure/ CounterAttack/Belly Up/Slick Palm Michigan’s Wounded Touch makes hardcore for those feeling afflicted in the age of AI-everything-for-the-sake-of-a-buck. Vocalist Nick Holland told Idiot EQ that his band’s new album ( A Vivid Depiction of Collapse , released over the summer) is about the anxieties of parenthood, partnerhood, and creative anxiety. While it’ll please fans of the Trustkill imprint, the webzine added that the record includes “unexpected touches of Nine Inch Nails and Sisters of Mercy.” (Deviant Libation, Tampa)

SUN 26

DJ Diesel The NBA season tipped off this week, but Shaquille O’Neal is still doing his side hustle. The 53-year-old literal giant of American pop culture has long been a fixture on CD racks (his rap debut was released in 1993), but more recently lives on the wubby side of the EDM scene as a DJ and producer. He plays an afternoon pool party to help you cope with the Sunday Scaries. (Hard Rock Event Center Pool at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Tampa)

Onlyonetwo (album listening party) In Onlyonetwo’s world, the whole block is turnt. The neighborhood shows up in St. Pete’s warehouse district when the trappy homegrown rapper offers a preview of a new album, Dreams Sent By God . (Suite E Studios, St. Petersburg)

C Poison Girl Friend w/Mother Soki If Sade ever needs to start dipping into J-Pop, she ought to call Noriko Sekiguchi. Born in Yokohama and radicalized while clubhopping in the U.K. in the late-80s, the pop songwriter and producer better known as Poison Girl Friend is an underground legend who’s bringing here resurgence to this intimate club gig that’s part of her second-ever U.S. tour. Sekiguchi’s 1992 outing Melting Moment earned a 9.2 rating on Pitchfork the first time critics assessed it (no re-do required!), with E.R. Pulgar lauding the record’s “intoxicating blend of trip-hop, UK club, yé-yé, and dream pop.” The songcraft is evident in Melting Moment (she was initially signed to Polydor to do a singersongwriter record), but what’s made her a beat-nerd icon is production that brings strings, vulnerable vocals, field recordings and texture into pop built to withstand the test of trends and time. Minneapolis producer and songwriter Annie Tammearuis (aka Mother Soki) opens. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

MON 27

Reneé Rapp w/Ravyn Lenae Here’s one of a few shows where you can laugh, cry and feel like a baddie within a couple hours. Rapp, a previous MTV and VMA nominee for “Best New Artist” and “PUSH Performance of the Year,” had her breakout role as Regina George in the Broadway production of “Mean Girls” six summers ago. Following her success as Playbill’s queen of the plastics, the 25-year-old took her talents to theaters in the 2024 “Mean Girls” movie. Rapp went viral on TikTok for a video of her belting Drew

Gasparini’s song “What Remains” with her leg stretched above her head—talk about having a leg up. Read a Q&A with opener Ravyn Lenae on p. 43. (Yuengling Center, Tampa) Jani Burden

TUE 28

Lamp Drawing inspiration from Brazilian music and Western pop of the ‘60s and ‘70s, wannabe Simon & Garfunkel Lamp has created melodies like no other. Straight out of a studio ghibli film, the lightness and whimsy of its music is a dreamy music-scape reminiscent of Japanese pop and soft-rock. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)—Sophia Lowrie

C Lene Lovich Lovich rarely plays the U.S. and has never hit the Bay area (as far as Creative Loafing Tampa Bay can tell). The 76-year-old art school dropout is best known for her 1979 hit “Lucky Number,” but is so much more than that. A review from a Manchester show last may noted that Lovich’s “set is end-to-end, ground-breaking, almost prog pop, and far more in common with that weird art pop of the mid-seventies pre-punk period, like Fox or even Sparks, than any punk rock aggro.” (Ferg’s Concert Pavilion, St. Petersburg)

WED 29

Bktherula There’s a lot of “Dumb Shit” to listen to out there, including a summer single from Atlanta rapper Bktherula. The track is from a new album, Lucy, a swaggering collection of trap that bends introspective without straying from the energetic femme-chismo, big 808s and kitschy synth that’s become a hallmark for the emergent 23-year-old. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)

THU 30

The Haunt Mod Son collaborator The Haunt is no stranger to our neck of the woods, having played venues surrounding its hometown of Ft. Lauderdale for years. On the up-and-up in the world of radio rock, siblings Anastasia Grace Haunt and Maxamillion Haunt arrive supporting a debut full-length, New Addiction . (Crowbar, Ybor City)

C A Jerry Jeff Walker Tribute: Bob Livingston w/Kip Kelly/Rod E. Morris/ Zach Whitney/Eric “Flycatcher” Carlson/ Gabe Whitney/John Frinzi  Jimmy Buffett wouldn’t have been an icon without Walker, the outlaw country legend that gave Mr. Cheeseburger in Paradise a hand up (and his first cowboy hat) when he didn’t have a leg to stand on. “He was the best carnival sideshow performer there ever was,” Buffett—who died three years after Walker—told Texas Monthly. Admirers of the Lone Star state maverick and son of square-dance champions (including former Buffett collaborator John Frinzi) pay tribute. Just don’t expect any of them to get as drunk as Walker did (no one could go on a bender like the ““Mr. Bojangles” singer). (NoiseMakers, St. Petersburg)

See an extended version of this listing via cltampa.com/music.

Cornelia Murr spent the summer on her debut headlining tour, and she’s opening for Matt Maltese’s fall run, including the final show, which happens in Ybor City next month. And the headliner isn’t the only one with a relaxing new album out, either.

After sticking to EPs and singles over the last few years, Murr (who has called many places in the U.S. home since leaving England at the age of six) finally released her sophomore album earlier this year.

A Flock of Seagulls w/DJ Ant Thursday, Oct. 23. 7 p.m. $10 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg

Puddle of Mudd w/Kamenar Friday, Oct. 24. 7 p.m. $25 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg

Lene Lovich Tuesday, Oct. 28. 8 p.m. $25 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg Devil’s Playground: Precipice w/ Killz On Contact/Alice’s Fever Dream/Karkaza/End Of Us/Markuss The Karkuss and The Bloody Nuns/ Castrofate/Six Feet of Venison Friday, Oct. 31. 5 p.m. $20. Brass Mug, Tampa

Harry Potter Rave Saturday, Nov. 1. 10:30 p.m. No cover with RSVP before midnight, $15.57 for guaranteed entry. The Ritz, Ybor City

Swim In Salt (record release) Saturday, Nov. 1. 8 p.m. $10. Anecdote Brewing Co., Indian Rocks Beach

Black Flag w/The Queers Wednesday, Nov. 19. 7 p.m. $29 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg

Toubab Krewe Thursday, Dec. 4. 8 p.m. $25.03. Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa

Run To The Center is a therapeutic love letter to Nebraska—where the 28-year-old singersongwriter had renovated a house and visited her mom in the small town of Red Cloud—full of dreamy synths straight out of a lo-fi studying playlist, and soothing-as-ever vocals.

Tickets to see Cornelia Murr and Matt Maltese play The Ritz Ybor on Tuesday, Nov. 4 are still available and cost $46.46. See my weekly rundown of new concerts coming to Tampa Bay below.—Josh Bradley

Wang Chung w/DJ Ant Monday, Dec. 8. 7 p.m. $22 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg

Elovators After Party: Eric Swanson w/ Flip Flop Republic/Stoney Banks Friday, Dec. 12. 10 p.m. $16.05. Bayboro Brewing, St. Petersburg

The Casualties w/Crazy & The Brains Wednesday, Dec. 17. 7 p.m. $30.70. Crowbar, Ybor City

Apes Of The State w/The Official Bard of Baldwin County Wednesday, Jan. 14. 8 p.m. $17.67. Crowbar, Ybor City

D.O.D. Saturday, Jan. 17. 10 p.m. $25.96 & up. The Ritz, Ybor City

Great White w/Slaughter Friday, Jan. 23. 7 p.m. $29 & up. Ferg’s Concert Pavillion, St. Petersburg

The Weight Band Friday, Jan. 23. 8 p.m. $37.50 & up. Bilheimer Capitol Theatre, Clearwater

54 Ultra w/Orca Sunday, Jan. 25. 7 p.m. $29.67. Crowbar, Ybor City

Inzo w/Truth/Late Night Radio/Zen Selekta Saturday, Feb. 14. 5 p.m. $44 & up. The BayCare Sound, Clearwater

PINELLAS ALE WORKS

The middle

Dear Oracle, my brother and dad fight all the time. They often blow up at each other, then don’t speak for a while, using me as a middleman. It’s exhausting. What can I do about it?—Monkey in the Middle Cards: King of Swords, Knight of Wands (reversed), High Priestess, Two of Wands (reversed), New Moon

Dear Monkey, I’m sorry that you’re caught in the crosshairs between your dad and your brother. It’s never fun to be dragged into someone else’s fight, and it’s even worse when it’s family.

Judging by the cards, it’s unsurprising that your father and brother are often going at it. Your dad is the King of Swords — an intelligent man, but one who can be overtly critical and has a long memory for slights. Your brother, on the other hand, is the Knight of Wands: passionate and fiery, and one who isn’t used to holding their tongue. The combination suggests both are quick to take offense and aren’t afraid to share what the other did wrong—and I doubt they would agree that they are both the guilty party.

something under the surface that we don’t want to address, when we know there is a problem but refuse to speak about it.

I don’t think your brother and dad like fighting all the time. I think they both acknowledge that it’s a problem, and both know that it stems from something much deeper than whatever surface-level fight they are currently having. But while the deep-rooted issue is there, I’m not sure they exactly know what to do about it.

ORACLE OF YBOR

Send your questions to oracle@cltampa.com or DM @theyboracle on Instagram

With the Two of Wands reversed, I think this has been a dynamic that they have had for a long time, something they both dislike but don’t know how to change. They keep making the same choices over and over, which leads to the same fights, and the cycle continues. But they don’t have to. The Two of Wands can be a call to change. They can break this cycle— and, most importantly, I think they want to.

If this has been their dynamic for decades, then they might not know how to stop. A family therapist would probably be a good step, as would an honest conversation about wanting to change (if they can do so without fighting).

if they want the other person to know something, they have to tell him themselves. I know that is far easier said than done, but one way to break this cycle for yourself is to opt out. I hope they mend their fences. Best of luck, my dear.

Dear Oracle, three years ago, I lost the love of my life to cancer. We had talked about marriage and children, and even though we didn’t get there, I am so grateful for the time I had with her. At my birthday a few weeks ago, some of our mutual friends brought up that my love would want me to be happy and still get married/have children, and I agreed. (She told me so when she was still alive.) I do think I’m ready to start looking again…but I have no idea how. I truly believe she was my soulmate, so how am I supposed to date casually? Do the cards have any advice?—Dare to date?

Cards: Strength, The Star (reversed), Four of Swords, The Chariot (reversed)

happen. You’re walking side by side with your grief, but it doesn’t have the same power it once did. You can lead your own way.

The Star is a card of both hope and about our truest self. It’s who we are without anyone’s expectations, balanced and happy. During times of great grief, we put parts of ourselves away for one reason or another. Maybe it didn’t feel appropriate, maybe it was too hard to bear. But what is something that makes you ‘you’? What’s something that brings you joy, something you haven’t done in a while? Grief does shape us, but our core self is still in there. How can you become a bit more like yourself?

The Four of Swords suggests that you’ve taken a long time to think about what you want, that you have moved through your grief, and even though it may not go away completely, even though you might still be in mourning, you are not acting rashly. It’s a card that can appear after deep reflection, and I think you know what you want: a loving relationship and a family.

But I don’t think this is just the effect of two strong personalities in close contact. The High Priestess is the ruler of both the subconscious and knowledge. She can appear when there is

But what are you supposed to do about it?

Nothing. As the New Moon, you can withdraw your energy and let yourself off the hook for this one. You can tell them that you won’t be the go-between;

Dear DD, I am so sorry for your loss. As someone who has also lost loved ones to quick and brutal cancer, I know how devastating that can be and how cruel it can seem to them. A piece of advice I once got about mourning was that after a death, you can choose to either lay a part of yourself down in the coffin with them, or carry a part of them and let them live through you. I think your love would want you to be happy, so seeking happiness is a way to honor her. You’re doing it for those who can’t. It is difficult, but you’ve done difficult things. You are going to do this the same way you got through the last three years: with strength. As the Strength card, you are not forcing things to

With The Chariot, the only path is forward— but as it’s reversed, maybe ease yourself back into the game. You might not be ready for fullon dates, but maybe do something Star-like (a concert? Improv show? Run club?) and allow yourself to talk to other women. If the vibes are right, maybe even lightly flirt!

I know the darkness of grief can feel everlasting, but the light of hope from The Star and the momentum of The Chariot will, in time, help pull you through. I’m proud of you for stepping into the light, my dear.

See more of Caroline and learn about her services via carolinedebruhl.com.

The Cuckening

I’m a bi girl in a serious relationship with a bi guy, and said bi guy has a major thing for being cucked. We’ve had a few threesomes before, but only with bisexuals and the focus was on all three of us equally. Recently, though, we had a 2-on-1 threesomes with a straight guy, and it was GOOD for me. Really good. Nothing would make me happier than to go on a spree (with protection, of course) of fucking around with guys, my boyfriend fucking around with guys, the two of us fucking around with other guys together, etc. Have you seen men lately? Good stuff. I want to go full speed ahead, but my boyfriend is conflicted. On one hand: immeasurable arousal, fulfillment of his cuckold fantasies, etc. On the other... intense jealousy and anxiety! And on my end? An irrepressible hunger that wasn’t there before. I love my boyfriend so much and our sex life is amazing, but my appetite can’t be satiated by just one guy anymore! Please help!—Down To Cuck

“First, this is an amazing problem to have,” said Hopeful Cuck, one of four co-hosts of Cuck My Life, the podcast for cucks by cucks. “They’re on a journey, an adventure, and they’re in store for some pretty amazing sex. So, however they go about this, I’m sure they’re going to have a lot of fun.” I never like to contradict a guest expert — especially one as qualified as Hopeful Cuck — but it sounds to me like you’re already having fun; you don’t say how long you’ve been together, but you’ve had more threesomes in the time you’ve been together than most people have in a lifetime. Whatever else you’re into, it’s pretty clear you’re not into delayed gratification. But you’re moving into trickier emotional territory, DTC, and if you don’t want to screw this up for yourself — and a cuck boyfriend sounds like your ideal partner, DTC, so you really don’t wanna screw this up — you’re gonna need to move at your boyfriend’s speed.

your way to the apartment of a hot straight guy who’s down to fuck you in front of your cuck boyfriend.

SAVAGE LOVE

“Things feel close to boiling over right now,” said Aussie Cuck, another one of the hosts of Cuck My Life, “and I’d suggest cooling things down a little. They should explore the fantasy together without a third. Use toys while he watches, but can’t touch. She should talk him through what her ‘imaginary bull’ is doing. Try light humiliation or even chastity play. These shallow-end steps let them test how the power dynamic fits their relationship. Once they’ve built trust and clarity, they’ll be in a stronger place to invite someone else in.” I never like to contradict a guest expert— especially one as qualified as Aussie Cuck—but you’ve already had someone else in. (Some hot straight guy was quite literally in you, right?) But when your boyfriend brought up cuckolding, he wasn’t just talking about you fucking other guys or the two of you fucking other guys together. Threesomes are one thing—an emotionally tricky thing for many couples—but a cuckold couple has to find the right balance between jealousy and arousal. If he’s truly a cuck, he wants you to make him feel anxious and insecure without ever making him feel too anxious or too insecure. Figuring out how to do that for (and with) him is going to take some thought, DTC, not just some more guys.

“Being a cuckoldress or a hotwife isn’t a hall pass to sleep with anyone, anytime,” said Aussie Cuck. “It’s a responsibility, especially while he’s still figuring out his boundaries and the kind of cuck dynamic he wants. If he truly has a cuck fantasy, why does her being with another man spark jealousy when they’ve already shared that space? Does it feel different if the third is male rather than female? Or is he scared of being left behind while she dives in deeper?”

on—then he’s obviously not cuckolding you when he fucks around. Your relationship could wind up being a rare melding of a cuck kink with a hotwifing/husbanding/partnering kink: he’s your sub when you cuck him (fucking other guys is about your pleasure) and he’s still your sub when he gets fucked by another guy (because him fucking other guys pleases you). I’m speculating here—only you know what it means to you when he fucks other guys—but your feelings, needs, and meanings also need to be a part of the conversation.

Last word goes to our guest experts: “This is a high wire act,” said Hopeful. “You both need to understand that mistakes happen. Rules and boundaries get broken. The heat of the moment can be intense. Be ready to forgive missteps. Talk about these things and adjust your relationship accordingly.” “Learn to swim together before diving deep — that way, the chances of shared pleasure and success are much greater,” said Aussie Cuck.

Follow Hopeful Cuck on Twitter @New_ Hopeful, follow Aussie Cuck on Twitter @ CuckooCuck, and Cuck My Life is available on all podcasting platforms.

“Her partner is nervous,” said Hopeful. “He is experiencing ‘cuck angst,’ that special sauce that each cuck experiences differently. There is no one piece of advice that will fix this, it has to be a multi-pronged approach. First, they need to talk to one another. What expectations, ideas, fantasies do each of them have around this kink? Does he want to be humiliated? Does she feel comfortable humiliating him? How do their desires align? How do they differ?” Basically, DTC, you need to insist that your boyfriend explain to you—in exhausting detail—exactly what cuckolding means to him, exactly what excites him about being cuckolded, and exactly what kind of cuckold he wants to be. And that’s not a conversation you can have in an Uber on

Final question for you, DTC: If your boyfriend is a cuck, it means something very specific to him when you sleep with another man, particularly a man you can’t share, i.e. a straight guy who’s only interested in you. So, what does it mean to you when he sleeps with another man? Some people will insist that you’re doing it wrong—that your boyfriend isn’t really a cuckold—of he gets to fuck other people, too. Hopeful, Aussie, and I agree that you should ignore those people.

“There is no ‘right way’ to do this, and no wrong way, either,” said Hopeful. “You just need to figure out how you can do it in a way that will meet the majority of both of your needs.” Still, if you don’t feel jealous and turned on when he fucks other men—if all you feel is turned

I’ve finally met the one, or so I thought. I’m 40 and have dated a lot. A few months ago, I started dating a kind, generous, funny, emotionally intelligent man and I have a deep intuitive sense that he’s my person, and I’m his. We haven’t had a lot of sex (we’re both very busy). The first time we had sex, he went down on me, he told me he loves going down (that it’s his favorite thing to do), but he hasn’t again since. I asked him about it, and in the most gentle and hesitant way he told me that he finds my pussy overwhelmingly “aromatic “and that’s why he’s kept his face away from it. I’ve never heard this before and have had other partners who spent lots of time down there with no problems; and I also always wash my leggings after one wear because they’re good and ripe and need it, as I’m generally a pretty juicy woman. My initial reaction was to consider what I might do differently (classic anxious attachment go-to), shower before sex; change my pubic hair maintenance; find and take a magical pussysmell enhancing pill; change my diet; see the ob-gyn about possible bacterial factors—you tell me, I’m willing. I really like this guy and want him to want to eat me all night long. I’m super

bummed that my natural odor turns him off. Maybe it’s not going to work between us after all? I don’t want to be with someone who isn’t super into my lady parts.—Scents And Sensitivities I’m not a medical doctor, SAS, but if your leggings are “ripe” after a single wear, something more than “juicy” could be going on. So, go see your OB-GYN to rule out bacterial vaginosis (BV), which can make pussies aromatic in bad ways. (There’s been a real breakthrough in treatment for recurring UTIs, which I discussed on a recent Savage Lovecast episode with Dr. Jen Gunter, author of The Vagina Bible, and we discussed BV as well.) As hard as it was to hear, your new boyfriend might’ve done you a favor; if you do have BV, he may have spotted it before you did, SAS, because he can put his nose places you can’t put yours, and he gently flagged something that needed to be flagged. But if your doctor gives you the all-clear and you bathe regularly and you change your leggings daily—and a quick whore’s bath/broderick doesn’t make a difference—then it’s probably not a you problem. It’s most likely a him problem: maybe he doesn’t like how you taste (sometimes people don’t click chemically or pheromonally) or maybe he’s one of those guys who hates eating pussy but won’t admit it. Instead, he tells a woman he loves to eat pussy and then tries to convince her there’s something wrong with her— something that prevents him from eating her particular pussy—because he doesn’t want to admit there’s something wrong with him. Either way, you want a guy who’s enthusiastic about your lady parts and you were hoping this guy was that guy. But if there isn’t a medical issue you can address—if we’re not talking BV—then it’s pretty clear this guy isn’t that guy, SAS, and changing your leggings twice a day and/or restyling your pubic hair isn’t gonna turn him into that guy. DTMFA. P.S. “The one” is a myth. The best you can do is find a .72 or a .83 and round that motherfucker up to “the one.”

Got problems? Yes, you do! Email your question for the column to mailbox@savage.love! Or record your question for the Savage Lovecast at savage.love/askdan! Podcasts, columns and more at Savage.Love

Legal, Public Notices

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