Fun Freetime: X Games and X Fest

As X Games Minneapolis makes its debut in the Twin Cities from July 13 – 16, it will host a variety of entertainment and activities suited for the whole family throughout X Fest, which will be located in the Medtronic Plaza at U.S. Bank Stadium and The Commons across the street in downtown Minneapolis. In addition to sponsor activations, interactive courses, concessions, athlete meet ‘n greets and giveaways, X Fest will also be home to the X Fest Stage, installations by local Twin Cities visual artists, Sour Punch Next X Parks and the FACEIT X Games Rocket League Invitational Esports competition. As an added bonus, X Fest will offer guests free Wi-Fi provided by Comcast Xfinity. X Fest is free on Thursday evening, July 13, to watch Skateboard and BMX Vert kick off the official competition of X Games Minneapolis. An event ticket is required to enter X Fest from Friday to Sunday.

X Fest hours are as follows (all times CT): Thursday, July 13                     4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Friday, July 14                          12 p.m. – 7 p.m. Saturday, July 15                      10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Sunday, July 16                        10 a.m. – 5 p.m. X FEST STAGE  The X Fest Stage will showcase live entertainment during all four days of X Fest with amazing DJ’s, exciting bands and daily giveaways of incredible prizes. Artists playing the stage include: DJ Shannon Blowtorch – Sitting as the resident DJ of the X Games weekend, she is a Minneapolis local and award-winning DJ. DJ Livia & DJ Precious – At nine and 10 years old, they’re part of the Monster Kids Crew out of Chicago.  Known for their tribute sets to rap legends, they’ll be on the X Fest stage both Saturday and Sunday. TJ Mizell – Son of Jam Master Jay and currently the touring DJ for A$AP Ferg. Red Baraat – A pioneering multi-cultural group from Brooklyn famously dubbed "the best party band in years" by NPR The Flavor Savers – Having opened for international touring acts – including John Oates and Usher – the Flavor Savers are the hottest sketch comedy electro-rap dance group, having performed for thousands across North America, including Bonnaroo Music + Arts Festival. White Reaper – Straight down the middle rock n' roll from Kentucky, White Reaper recently played Bonnaroo Music + Arts Festival.   ART INSTALLATIONS Drawing from the deep pool of Twin Cities talent, X Games has teamed up with the several visual artists who will be bringing their skills to X Games Minneapolis with live painting executions and large scale installations. Minneapolis local, Hot Tea, will install some of his signature fence panels as well as an eight-foot steel and yarn installation created just for X Games. Local artist Mark Rivard will showcase a student skateboard art gallery and interactive skateboard art studio, where visitors can create their own board designs with Mark and his Rivard Art team. Located at the main entry of the music venue, the City of Minneapolis-sponsored Creative City Challenge will showcase an impressive installation featuring “Orbacles” by Minn_Labb – designed to inform visitors of the effects of climate change on bird species and activate the senses through sound, smell and water.    Other artists, curated by SprATX, will be featured throughout X Fest and include Biafra, WUNDR,Greg Gossel, Adam Turman, Dinky Donalds, Wes Winship, Jeremy Wright and Andrew Broder. X Games’ bi-annual action sports photography contest, World of X Games Presents ZOOM, will be back at X Games Minneapolis with its signature lightbox installations of the six finalist photographs. SOUR PUNCH NEXT X PARKS   Fans can aim to be the next X Games superstar by trying out one of the professionally-designed Skateboard Street and BMX Park interactive courses or the Skateboard Pump Track. Sour Punch Next X Parks will also feature daily pro athlete demos on the vert ramp, along with the opportunity to “learn how-to vert” for kids of all ages. FACEIT X GAMES ROCKET LEAGUE INVITATIONAL FACEIT, the leading online competitive gaming platform, has teamed up with ESPN X Games to present the FACEIT X Games Rocket League Invitational – a new Esports competition taking place within X Fest.  Competitors will battle in heated rounds of Rocket League, a high-powered hybrid of arcade-style soccer and driving, to vie for a $75,000 prize pool. The FACEIT X Games Rocket League invitational will take place July 14-16 and will be streamed live on ESPN3 and additional platforms. More information on the tournament format and teams participating will be announced in the near future. Ticket information and full music and competition schedules are available at XGames.com/tickets.  Admission to X Fest is included in the price of a ticket. Additional information on all X Games Minneapolis 2017 events is available on www.xgames.com for fans or on www.espnmediazone.com for media only.