May the 4th Be With You’: Long Beach Filipino Festival Wraps Up Its 5th Year
Photo From: Long Beach Filipino Festival
Long Beach CA, May 6, 2024 - On Saturday, May 4, 2024, over 100 Filipino Americans from Long Beach gathered in Jackie Robinson Academy Field to celebrate the 5th Annual Long Beach Filipino Festival “May the 4th Be With You”. The festival is a fun-filled event with the purpose of honoring Filipino and Filipino-American communities in Long Beach and beyond. Erik Escobar and Erick Esteban, two comedians, hosted the event with singer, actress, and model Shekinah Austria and the Long Beach Filipino Festival Vice President, Jun Aglipay. The festival featured live performances, food vendors, and market vendors for attendees of all ages to enjoy.
The event began with the US National Anthem, sung by Romaliza, a Filipino-American R&B pop artist. Afterward, Dylin Rodrigo, a young Filipino-American actor, sang the Philippine National Anthem. The Executive Director of the Filipino Long Beach Festival gave welcoming remarks for everyone to hear. Then, the fun of the festival officially started.
Singers, dancers, and entertainers made the festival alive from 11 am to 6 pm, they all had the audience on their feet. Dylan Rodrigo once again performed on the stage, being the first of many. The dance groups that performed in the festival include Kaba Modern, Junior New System, The Broadway Jazzers, CSULB PAC Culture, and Touch of Ke’Aloha. Aside from dancers, there were also specialty acts by The Magikeros who performed magic tricks, Northshore Martial Arts, Kali Kollective, and Steady who performed spoken poetry while accompanied by the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble.
Comedians Andrew Orolfo, John Liu, and Rey Cabato also performed, entertaining the crowd with their comedy. The solo singers present were Zos!mo, Romaliza, Rafaella Angelica, and Madima. CRSB, the duet singers were also there. While Darius Jakob, and Russ Coson showed off their hip-hop skills on the stage.
The vendors that served beverages to hydrate the participants include the Energy Smoothie Bar and Tim’s Thai Tea. Magic Fluff provided an assortment of cotton candy for those with a sweet tooth. Seven Am Coffee provided a caffeine fix for coffee lovers. At the same time, Purple Yum Bakeshop featured a selection of desserts incorporating purple yam, and Cafe De’ Crepes served delicious crepes. Savory foods were the ones who dominated the festival. Fullsend BBQ, Ethan’s Belly Boink, Sinful Indulgence, Twins Chicken, Inihaws Filipino BBQ, and Comfort Wingz are all there to serve the people delicious and unique dishes to ensure everyone is well-fed.
Aside from trying different sweets and dishes, participants also get the chance to shop for souvenirs and other useful items from the market vendors. Some of the vendors include Sari-Sari Storybooks, Kawayan Islands, Tatak ni Kubuay, Chedriel, Nica’s Necessities, By and By LLC, Kamay Goods, Kilig Ko LLC, Kahoy Kollection, The STKR Store, TIXXI Couture, PST Gear, Lagula Beach, Manila Candle, Hella Kulit, Illa Manila, Bali Mantra, P’Nai, Chorva Co., Sabi Ni Lolo, Para Sayo, Woven Culture, Mie Makes, and Sunkissed Pinay.
As the festivities of the 5th Annual Long Beach Filipino Festival came to an end, attendees left Jackie Robinson Academy Field with joy, possible with a bag full of souvenirs, or a new favorite song they got from the live performance. The festival is a celebration of Filipino and Filipino-Americans, a way to gather the community together and feel the Filipino spirit despite being far away from the Philippines. The force was definitely with each and every one of the attendees.
