Electronic dance music is blasting across the arena. On stage, the DJ wears his trademark white helmet, which looks like a giant Marshmallow. The dance floor is jam-packed with fans moving in energized unison, waving lighted foam batons, and lasers and lights flash through the air. The scene belongs in Las Vegas, or a dance music festival.
But this is the grandstand arena at the Ventura County Fairgrounds, and these thousands of concert-goers are here to see Marshmello, one of the biggest DJs in the world.
To the right of the concert-goers, the illuminated fairground rides are spinning; behind them, the ocean waves are crashing. And these fans haven’t paid hundreds of dollars to be here. In fact, this is just one of the free music acts playing at this year’s Ventura County Fair, where the cost of the concert is included in the price of entry to the fair (which is, frankly, less than the price of one drink if you were seeing Marshmello in Vegas).
The value of having such a popular act perform here is not lost on the thousands of show-goers who were lining up to get in, many of whom have either been brought by a family member or brought their own family members along.
The idea is to offer music acts for all generations and all genres, casting aside the traditional ideas of what the music at a county fair should be, said the Ventura County Fairgrounds CEO Heidi Ortiz.
"We have a very dynamic lineup; we try to get different variations of genres so anybody can come to the fair and enjoy what they like best. Whether it be rock and roll or country or EDM, which is a new genre we've been adding to the fair within the last year and two," she said.
"We have eight nights of amazing concerts. We have the VIP or go-free concept implemented, so if you want to get up closer to the stage, you know, you can buy that VIP ticket, or if you just want to watch in the GA section too, you could do that too and come in for free," said Ortiz.
Musically, there are also local acts playing the smaller stages, and country star Nate Smith is among the other Grandstand headliners.
The Ventura County Fair is open daily from noon until August 9.
