Things to Do in Memphis This Weekend: 4/16 – 4/18

Happy Friday, everybody! The sun is shining, the weather is perfect, and there’s so much going on this weekend that you’ll have to try to be bored.

1. 8th Annual Southern Hot Wing Festival, South Main, Saturday, 12 p.m. – 6 p.m.

I love the annual hot wing festival. Cooking teams compete for wing-related awards and eaters compete to see who can eat the most wings. You can purchase wings from each cooking team, and all of the proceeds go to the Ronald McDonald House.

2. Rajun Cajun Crawfish Festival, Downtown (Wagner Place, between Union and Beale), Sunday, 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., free

Out of all of the crawfish-related activities at the Rajun Cajun Crawfish Festival, I’m most excited about watching the crawfish bob and the crawfish races. There will also be a gumbo cooking contest, music, and 10,000 pounds of crawfish. All of the proceeds benefit Porter Leath.

3. Storytellers Unplugged with the Wiseguys, Zinnies East Full Moon Club, Saturday, 8:30 p.m., $5

Local comedy legend Mo Alexander and I will  be joining the Wiseguys on Saturday night for their “Storytellers Unplugged” night. We’ll tell true stories and the Wiseguys will give their own unique interpretation of them. Between them, they’ll play traditional short-form improv games.

4. Grammy GPS Showcase, HiTone Cafe, Friday, 8:30 p.m., $10

The Recording Academy is having a weekend-long conference that will bring recording industry insiders to Memphis for shows and seminars. Tonight, there’s a showcase at the HiTone featuring a handful of local bands – the Dirty Streets, Pezz, Skewby, Tanks, and Jeremy Stanfill.

5. Memphis Farmer’s Market Season Opener, Central Station Pavilion, Saturday, 7 a.m. – 1 p.m., free

The downtown farmer’s market kicks off it’s fourth season on Saturday. Come pick up produce, bread, meat, cheese, fresh flowers, and homemade goods. They’ll have music and free pet sitting, as always.