5th annual Rockabillaque Florida to take place at Seminole Casino Hotel in Immokalee

Get ready for the fifth annual Rockabillaque Florida at the Seminole Casino Hotel in Immokalee, a mid-century celebration with a modern-day twist.

The event, which celebrates mid-century and 1950s Americana, will take place on Friday, Jan. 17, and Saturday, Jan. 18. It is open to all ages and admission and parking are free.

On Saturday, gates open at 10 a.m., and doors open at 11 a.m.

Rockabillaque Florida will feature national and regional musical acts, a classic car and vintage bike show, contests including a pin-up, beard and mustache competition, a tattoo contest, a vendors’ market, food trucks and more.

While the main event will be on Jan. 18, the kick-off party will be held the day before in the Zig Zag Lounge.

Headlining Saturday’s event are bands Pokey Lafarge, The Rhythm Shakers, Les Greene & the Swayzees and the Bellfuries.

For the first time ever, the event is bringing in a burlesque troupe to perform, and they’re performing on Friday and Saturday.

“We just try to make it a real action-packed schedule,” said Festival Producer Simon Cantlon.

Cantlon said he tries to make the music lineup different every year, bringing in diverse bands that he also listens to.

“I always try to mix it up and diversify and make it very eclectic and bring in different types of bands, but also fit the genre of the festival but try to keep it fresh every year, and it’s very important to me to bring in bands that I would actually listen to myself. Like, I’m very passionate about the music element of it,” Cantlon said.

Cantlon coins Rockabillaque as a mid-century celebration with a modern-day twist.

He explained that the name itself is a play on the term rockabilly. Originally, rock and roll was called rockabilly.

Classic artists such as Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and Little Richard were rockabilly artists.

“The term rockabilly basically means roots rock,” Cantlon said. “It’s a huge subculture all over the world. There’s lots of different rockabilly bands, but we like to also bring in other bands that are similar, like old-school country, honky tonk, Americana, jazz, swing– mix it up and create a very diverse lineup, so that’s basically the style of the music that we bring in.”

For this year’s event, Cantlon is most excited about seeing those familiar faces.

“It’s also really exciting to see new faces that are just discovering the event. It’s a really fun, diverse weekend that has something for everybody. You come out, and you have a great time, and it’s fun for all ages. There’s something going on throughout the day from Friday through the end of Saturday,” he said.

Coolers, backpacks and pets will not be permitted during this event.

For the full schedule and other details, click here.