Grammy winner and Oxnard native Anderson .Paak will skip his charity festival this year for a smaller event planned in Ventura next month featuring his alter ego DJ Pee .Wee.
The Brandon Anderson Foundation's Roll Call: Ventura Nights is scheduled for Nov. 22, according to an Instagram post from the foundation.
Jeanella Blair, foundation president, said DJ Pee .Wee, known for spinning records across multiple genres, will perform at Skating Plus in Ventura.
The .Paak House festival, which began in 2017 at MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, raises money to support underserved youth through the Brandon Anderson Foundation. Named after .Paak’s birth name, the nonprofit focuses on arts education and after-school and summer programs.
The festival was held
last year at CSU Channel Islands.
This year’s .Paak House festival was canceled because of conflicts with the artist’s touring schedule and a desire to explore new ways of connecting with the community. Organizers had considered returning to the university this year.
“That’s the intention, to go back to Channel Islands,” Blair said. “It was a great place to host, and he absolutely loved that venue.”
The festival drew nearly 10,000 people last year, said Richard LeRoy, vice president for university advancement at CSUCI.
“It was a great opportunity to showcase the university, and it was a great opportunity for our students to get to go to a concert as well,” he said.
The university had been working with .Paak House on an event later in October, but scheduling conflicts prevented it, he said.
Plans included working with dance and performance students and faculty to bring in local artists, as well as recruiting students to volunteer and support the festival.
LeRoy said they appreciated the partnership with the organizers of the .Paak House festival.
"We look forward to continuing to work with them and creating an environment to bring back a local celebrity in Anderson .Paak and engage the community on our campus," he said.
The Ventura event will start with an invitation-only afternoon gathering featuring skating, food trucks, a petting zoo and a photo booth for families facing the greatest economic hardship, Blair said.
The nonprofit is working with organizations that serve families receiving government assistance or other support to identify participants, she said.
.Paak will attend the gathering and interact with families, who will also receive Thanksgiving baskets before leaving, Blair said.
A separate, 21-and-over performance later that evening at Skating Plus, 1720 Mesa Verde Ave., Ventura will feature DJ Pee .Wee and special guests, she said.
About 900 tickets for the public event, which starts at 6 p.m., for $35, are expected to go on sale this week, Blair said.
For more information, follow the Brandon Anderson Foundation on Instagram.
Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at wesley.woodsii@vcstar.com, 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura event to feature musician Anderson .Paak alter ego DJ Pee .Wee
