fall festivals

Colossal new country music and BBQ bonanza fires up in Celina this fall

Trays might just look something like this.

Courtesy of the Houston Barbecue Festival

The meats are coming. The biggest names in Texas country music and Texas barbecue will take over the Dallas suburb of Celina for the inaugural Troubadour Festival on Saturday, November 6.

According to a release, Texas country music legends Pat Green and Josh Abbott Band will co-headline the event, which bills itself as a “Texas BBQ & Music Experience.” Also performing are Stoney LaRue, Cody Canada & The Departed, and Kyle Nix & The .38s.

But the music is just Part 1 of the big day. Part 2 is barbecue — and a lot of it. To be exact, 42 of the best and most celebrated barbecue restaurants in Texas will be on hand to serve attendees samples of smoked meats and more, the release says.

Organizers are promising "the largest number of barbecue restaurants in this capacity in the state."

Local big-name barbecue joints include: BBQ on the Brazos (Cresson), Black’s Barbecue (multiple locations), Dayne’s Craft Barbecue (Fort Worth), Hurtado Barbecue (Arlington), Hutchins BBQ (McKinney and Frisco), Tender Smokehouse (Celina & Frisco), Panther City Barbecue (Fort Worth), The Slow Bone (Dallas), and Vaqueros Texas Bar-B-Q (Grapevine), Zavala’s Barbecue (Grand Prairie), and more.

Restaurants heading to Celina from out of town include: 2M Smokehouse (San Antonio), Brett’s Backyard Bar-B-Que (Rockdale), Brett’s BBQ Shop (Katy), Brisket Love Barbecue & Icehouse (Lindale), Brotherton’s Black Iron BBQ (Pflugerville), CM Smokehouse (Austin), Helberg BBQ (Waco), Hill Barbecue (Lubbock), Kreuz Market (Lockhart), Guess Family BBQ (Waco), Louie Mueller Barbecue (Taylor), and many more.

See the complete lineup here.

“Being able to bring this many of Texas’ most premier barbecue restaurants along with five legendary names in Texas and Red Dirt Music was an unbelievable opportunity, and we couldn’t be happier than to put on our inaugural Troubadour Festival in Celina,” said Chase Colston, the festival’s co-founder and promoter. “I have been putting on barbecue and music festivals in Texas over the last seven years and I’ve seen first-hand just how passionate Texans (and outside the state) are about barbecue and music."

The entire event takes place at Old Celina Park, and there are three ticket options, from ravenous to not so hungry, basically: Troubadour VIP ($200), Troubadour BBQ & Music ($100), and Troubadour Music ($50).

VIP tickets ($200) include hour-earlier entry (12 pm) into the barbecue sampling, a festival t-shirt, discounted beverages, an exclusive VIP area with a private bar, seating, access to flushable toilets, and access to a standing-room only area in front of the stage.
BBQ & Music tickets ($100, 1 pm entry) include both the access to the food sampling and the concert.
Music tickets ($50, 4 pm entry) are good for the concert only.

Local food trucks will be open on-site after the barbecue sampling ends at 4 pm.

Tickets for Troubadour Festival go on sale at 10 am Friday, August 27, at troubadourfestival.com. Check the website for parking, COVID-19 protocols, and more.

festivals concerts barbecue

Turn Cancer Upside Down

Figure skating legend Scott Hamilton brings holiday ice show to DFW

Scott Hamilton & Friends Benefiting The Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation

Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Scott Hamilton will emcee the ice show.

Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic gold medal-winning figure skater known for his signature backflip, is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth for a holiday ice show and "Frozen 5K" fundraising mega-event.

The fundraiser portion ties into Hamilton's public battle with testicular cancer in the 1990s, which led him to found the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation in 2014. The nonprofit's mission is to fund innovative, patient-centered, targeted treatments that fight cancer while preserving quality of life.

One of its fundraising events is the Sk8 to Elimin8 Cancer ice shows, which bring Hamilton and other world-class athletes to rinks around the country.

NYTEX Sports Centre in North Richland Hills is hosting a holiday version on Saturday, December 20 at 7 pm, where Hamilton will emcee and Olympians Mariah Bell, Ashley Cain, and Polina Edmunds will perform.

Tickets range from $32.75 to $79, with proceeds benefiting UT Southwestern Medical Center in addition to the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation.

Mariah Bell, figure skating, Olympian Figure skater Mariah Bell. Getty Images

"This isn’t just an ice show - it’s a celebration of hope, resilience, and community," the city of North Richland Hills says in a Facebook post. "Expect breathtaking performances, holiday cheer, and the chance to see world-class athletes light up the ice, all while supporting a cause that will touch so many."

If you'd like to get out on the ice yourself, you can register for the Frozen 5K on December 21 and skate 35 laps to honor and remember those impacted by cancer. The $35 registration fee includes a T-shirt, or you can donate extra to receive other Sk8 to Elimin8 Cancer swag.

DFW-only fundraising incentives include an autographed program ($500), a VIP meet-and-greet plus autographed program ($1,000), or the chance to perform at the holiday ice show (top fundraisers only — see more info here). Better start stretching.

It's the perfect time for Hamilton to bring his ice show to North Texas. Ice rinks are a huge holiday trend for 2025, with kids of all ages gliding and spinning on special pop-up rinks from Grapevine to Garland to the all-new CultureMap City Rink in downtown Dallas.

scott hamilton cancer research fundraising olympians mariah bell ashley cain polina edmunds scott hamilton cares foundation ska8 to elimin8 cancer frozen 5k ice skating city rink