Hey, how ya doin’ Fuquay.
August arrives tomorrow carrying a watermelon-eating contest, 40+ bourbons and five hours of metalcore. It sounds like someone built the weekend after a few too many beers. But the result is unusually solid: there’s something for everyone and that’s the type of message we want to share each week.
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— First Sip Fuquay Team
THE SHORT LIST
Start Here: Your Weekend Lineup
If you only read one thing this week, make it this. The biggest stuff happening across town this week:
McLean Farms Watermelon Festival — Saturday, 10:00 AM–3:00 PM: Free admission, a watermelon-eating contest, live music, 30+ local vendors and a Touch a Tractor lineup. Parking is $5.
Metalcore Night Market @ Oaklyn Springs Brewery — Saturday, 4:00–9:00 PM: A free, family-friendly collision of metalcore, Screaming Karaoke, local makers and a fundraiser for Facilitate Rescue NC.
Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival @ Koka Booth Amphitheatre — Friday, 6:00–10:00 PM + Saturday: More than 60 beers, 40 bourbons, barbecue vendors and live music in Cary.
Community Impact Night @ Rock Solid Warrior — Friday, 6:00–8:00 PM: Ninja obstacles, games and open-gym time, with part of the proceeds supporting the Me Fine Foundation.
Still Kickin Band @ McWally’s — Friday, 7:00–9:00 PM: Two hours of live music with McWally’s Shark Week cocktail available on the side.
SATURDAY
🍉 Watermelons, everywhere
Image Credit: @gjohnstonphoto
McLean Farms Watermelon Festival | McLean Farms Nursery & Ice Cream Shop | Saturday, August 1, 10:00 AM–3:00 PM | Free admission; $5 parking
McLean Farms packs a frankly unreasonable amount of summer into five hours: a watermelon-eating contest, live music from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM, a Touch a Tractor lineup, more than 30 local vendors and ice cream from the farm shop. Admission is free and just $5 for parking.
This is the clearest family pick of the week, but it works just as well if your only dependents are a sweet tooth and an inability to pass a roadside farm stand. Go for the festival, then leave with produce and a scoop of ice cream.
FRIDAY-SATURDAY
🥃 Sixty beers, 40 bourbons and one very important rideshare
Image Credit: Koka Booth Ampitheatre
Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival | Koka Booth Amphitheatre | Friday, July 31, 6:00–10:00 PM + Saturday, August 1 | Ticketed
The name undersells the math. Koka Booth is lining up more than 60 beers and 40 bourbons, with admission covering a souvenir glass and all-you-care-to-taste samples. Barbecue vendors, live rock, blues and bluegrass, tasting seminars and carnival games fill out the rest of the grounds.
The Friday session runs 6:00–10:00 PM. On Saturday, VIP entry starts at noon and general admission starts at 2:00 PM; both run until 6:00 PM. Advance general admission is $45 and rises to $50 on the day. VIP is $79 in advance, and Friday VIP includes a barbecue dinner platter. Otherwise, barbecue is sold separately.
Kids 12 and under get in free, designated-driver tickets are $25 at the box office, and general parking is free. But if you plan to take “40+ bourbons” as a challenge rather than a description, Koka Booth has a designated rideshare drop-off area for a reason.
SATURDAY
🤘 Oaklyn Springs turns a brewery into a metalcore night market
Image Credit: Alternative Wines
Metalcore Night Market | Oaklyn Springs Brewery | Saturday, August 1, 4:00–9:00 PM | Free
This is not a five-hour concert. It is something stranger: a metalcore night market. DJ Danicus handles the soundtrack, local artists and makers set up around the brewery, and Screaming Karaoke gives anyone brave enough a chance to take the mic.
The Chaos Wall adds prizes and a purpose, with proceeds supporting Facilitate Rescue North Carolina. The whole event is explicitly family-friendly and free, which makes “Should we take the kids to metalcore night?” a legitimate question in Fuquay this weekend.
FRIDAY NIGHT
🦈 Shark Week and live music
Image Credit: McWallys
Still Kickin Band | McWally’s | Friday, July 31, 7:00–9:00 PM
Still Kickin takes over McWally’s for a two-hour Friday set. The useful extra: McWally’s is also running its Shark Week menu, including the MacAttack cocktail with a shark garnish and a splash of grenadine. Pair it with the Wally Burger if your ideal live-music plan begins with dinner and requires no venue-hopping.
LIVE TUNES
🎶 Your Weekend Music Calendar
Image Credit: DEADS
Here’s this weekend’s lineup:
Friday, July 31
Still Kickin Band at McWally’s — 7:00–9:00 PM: A compact two-hour set with the Shark Week menu still running.
Trey Everette at Aviator TapHouse — 7:00–10:00 PM: Three hours of free live music at the TapHouse.
Riff Raff at Aviator Hangar Bar — 8:30–11:30 PM: The band makes its first Hangar Bar appearance and owns the late shift.
Saturday, August 1
DEADS at Aviator Pizzeria & BeerShop — 7:00–10:00 PM: ’90s and 2000s hard rock with enough dad-rock nostalgia to justify another pizza.
Sayer McShane at American Legion Post 116 — 7:00–10:00 PM: Blues, rock, soul and originals; the show is open to the public.
Sunday, August 2
Sunday Open Mic at Oaklyn Springs Brewery — 2:00–5:00 PM: A rotating local lineup and the lowest-pressure way to keep the weekend going.
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THE REST
Honorable mentions for the week
Food Truck Friday @ Beech Bluff County Park — Friday, 5:30–7:30 PM: Bring a blanket or folding chair and turn dinner into a picnic on the Great Lawn.
Community Impact Night @ Rock Solid Warrior — Friday, 6:00–8:00 PM: Ninja obstacles, group games and open gym for $15 per person or $45 per family; part of the proceeds supports the Me Fine Foundation.
Fuquay-Varina Growers Market — Saturday, 8:00 AM–12:00 PM: The regular Saturday market for produce, baked goods and local vendors.
Quay Clash Pickleball Tournament — Saturday, check-in at 8:30 AM: Beginner and competitive doubles divisions for ages 16+ and 50+. Registration is $25 for residents and $32 for non-residents.
DEKA MILE @ Zeta Wolf Fitness — Sunday, 8:30 AM–2:00 PM: Ten functional-training zones, each preceded by a 160-meter run, for one total mile of running. Registration ranges from $45–$59.
$4 Mimosas @ The Mill — Sunday: The standing Sunday special and the easiest recovery plan on the list.
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