If you know, you know—ZENYARA® Desert Nights isn’t just another party during festival season. It’s the one. The exclusive, ultra-curated experience where luxury meets late-night desert energy and the vibes are always immaculate.
Let’s be real—if you weren’t at Neon Carnival this year, you missed the party of the festival season. Period. Held on April 12 at the Desert International Horse Park in Thermal, California, this invite-only after-hours oasis once again delivered an unforgettable, star-studded night of music, magic, and mayhem. Powered by PATRÓN EL ALTO Tequila, the fourteenth edition of this iconic bash wasn’t just a party—it was an experience.
The unrivaled annual Art fair showcases art from all around the world attracting artists and enthusiasts to sunny Miami year after year.
Festival season is not quite complete without a good pre or post-festival party. A fantastic day needs a fantastic start and what better way to start it off when you have somewhere to vibe (preferably pool side) and with complimentary drinks to set the tone for the fun filled day.
Two words: Neon Carnival. The most talked about festival party of over a decade returned to the desert on Saturday, April 13th. The one night only event was presented by Liquid I.V. in partnership with Patrón El Alto and The Levi’s® Brand.
Last weekend the iconic Neon Carnival took place during weekend 1 of the Coachella Music Festival. The exclusive invite-only event made its triumphant return to the desert for its 11-year-anniversary. The late-night festivities took place back at its permanent home at the Desert International Horse Park, where guests enjoyed carnival-style games and exciting amusement park thrills.
“Art Basel is the leading global platform connecting collectors, galleries, and artists,” according to the official website’s about section. “Art Basel’s Initiatives strive to create unique artist-led experiences and strengthen local art scenes.”
If you ask around though anyone will tell you it pretty much feels like it’s LA and New York crowds coming together with the tropical backdrop that is Miami. A chance to mix and mingle, attend fabulous parties, discover emerging artists, and do so all in the name of art.
Of course, The Knockturnal was on the scene in paradise city where we got to stop by the Zadig & Voltaire + Cultured event. Taking place at Zadig & Voltaire’s Miami Design District location, the celebration honored the brand’s philanthropic partnership with the L.A. Dance Project. Andrew Warren, RHOSLC’s Brooks Marks, and Gaia Matisse (great-great granddaughter of late artist Henri Matisse) hosted the event.
Special guests in attendance included Montana Tucker, Devon Windsor, Austin Mahone, Blake Gray and Michelle Salas among several others. Sips were had courtesy of ultra-luxe tequila brand Cincoro Tequila and their Miami inspired cocktail menu.
While, it’s no surprise fashion has infiltrated the Art Basel scene, the film landscape has also made it’s way into the event/ basel party circuit with an exclusive pop-up put together by Universal Pictures and Stella Artois. The private rooftop party took place at the notorious Soho Beach Club Miami to celebrate the release of the upcoming film The 355.
DJ Amrit hands down understood the assignment and gave the crowd some latin music mixes to bop to. It’s Miami after all! Specialty cocktails were flowing (obvi) and the most delicious appetizers were passed around. Cannot confirm or deny but suspicion that night was they were from Cecconi’s downstairs. Do I need to say more? You already know the hors d’oeuvre‘s were automatically a hit. My personal favorite were the truffle honey whipped ricotta crostinis. *Insert gasping emoji.* That’s how good they were.
In attendance model Charlotte McKinney, influencer Charly Jordan, and dancer Montana Tucker amongst more lovely guests. No sightings of Jessica Chastain, Penelope Cruz, or any of the stars of the film, but that’s okay because we can watch them on the big screen once the film hits theaters January 7th.
The most lit brunch took place in Miami during Art Basel thanks to author and award winning Chef Kwame along with American Express.
It all went down at the fabulous 1 Hotels in South Beach where guests enjoyed delicious food curated by the former Top Chef contestant/judge himself and sounds by DJ Moma.
“You have everything from chicken and waffles with chili honey, to jerk broccoli tacos to even lobster and salmon rolls and black truffle quiche,” said Chef Kwame about the food on the menu for the brunch festivities.
Chef Kwame’s impressive credentials include: Forbes 30 under 30 honoree, being named one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs, and Esquire Magazine’s 2019 Chef of the Year amongst various others. Not to mention his memoir “Notes from a Young Black Chef,” is currently being turned into a feature film by A24.
We got to catch up with him at The Savor and Soul event where we talked about his career and got to try his delicious food first hand. Our personal favorite was the egg and steak on a mini croissant dish. That wasn’t the only thing keeping us entertained though. Heads turned when Issa Rae walked into the party.
The HBO’s Insecure creator mixed and mingled with guests before meeting up with Lizzo who’s appearance at the party also surprised the crowd. Lizzo looked dazzling wearing a purple floral one piece and it wasn’t long before a mini mob follow the two icons around eager to snap pics.
Later that evening Lizzo had a ticketed concert on the beach hosted by American Express as well. Those who might’ve not had tickets for the concert got to see a little glimpse of her at the brunch gathering.
It isn’t everyday you could say you brunched with Lizzo, and Issae Rae amongst the other notable attendees. Not to mention eating bomb food from Chef Kwame. Shout out to American Express!
Rap star Cardi B is venturing into a new space of entrepreneurship with her latest, Whipshots, a vodka-infused whip cream.
Partnered with Starco Brands, Cardi’s new Whipshots ensure anyone can Party like Cardi and that we sure did.
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA – DECEMBER 04: Cardi B and Starco Brands launch Whipshots at The Goodtime Hotel on December 04, 2021 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Whipshots)
On Saturday night, The Knockturnal got to attend the sweets themed launch party which took place at Pharrell and David Grutman’s The Good Time Hotel in South Beach. High profile guests included Offset, Mary J. Blige, Timbaland, Winston Duke, Tainy, and Dale Moss amongst others.
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA – DECEMBER 04: Tainy attends as Cardi B and Starco Brands launch Whipshots at The Goodtime Hotel on December 04, 2021 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Whipshots)
Deserts and drinks were served with the 3 Whipshot flavors – vanilla, caramel, and mocha – to showcase the boozy whip cream can be enjoyed in cocktails, deserts, or even as a solo shot.
There to prove it was not only renowned Las Vegas mixologist Rob Floyd who put on a show to wow the crowd, but also Cardi herself going around the crowd and spraying shots of Whipshots into guests’ mouths.
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA – DECEMBER 04: Mixologist Rob Floyd does a demonstration as Cardi B and Starco Brands launch Whipshots at The Goodtime Hotel on December 04, 2021 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Whipshots)
While some stars opt for tequila or wine brands Cardi’s choice of product was emphasized when she told Billboard, “I’m not really a hardcore liquor-drinking person. And I like things that are sexy and tasty.” Boujee and boozy, Whipshots contain 10% alcohol so you already know you can expect a party in every can. Not only that but they also don’t require refrigeration.
Whipshot will be available nationwide and on shelves across the U.S starting next year but if you want to get your hands on one sooner check out Whipshots.com to get your fix.
Blindspotting, co-written and co-starred by Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs, is part dark comedy and part poetic musical, choreographed by Jon Boogz and Lil Buck. Casal and Diggs are executive producers on the series and features Casal as not only the showrunner but also reprises his role as Miles, Ashley’s longtime boyfriend. The limited series (8 episodes) follows the critically acclaimed 2018 feature film, six months after Miles goes to jail. However, this time the narrative is heavily focused on the people who are affected by Miles’s longer-than-expected jail sentence for possession of drugs.
Ashley, his loyal and devoted longtime girlfriend, is forced to move in with his hippie, Birkenstock-wearing mother, Rainey (Helen Hunt), and Instagram baddie sister Trish (Jaylon Barron) to raise their young son Sean (Atticus Woodward). While Ashley is making ends meet by working in a boujee Chateau Marmont-esque hotel full of white privilege, Trish has a progressive sex workgroup of girls running their half-naked business in the living room.
The series is nothing short of hilarious with Candace Nicholas-Lippman as Ashley’s protective best friend and Benjamin Earl Turner as the neighbor next door negotiating with little Sean for a food truck burrito since he’s on house arrest. Blindspotting is more than a comedy as it tackles deeper issues of wealth disparity and shows the reality of the failed justice system in America. You can expect to laugh out loud and want to become more of an activist for prison reform after watching the series.
The LA premiere took place at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery on Sunday, June 13th, and stars Jasmine Cephas Jones (Ashley), Helen Hunt (Miles’s mom, Rainey), Jaylen Barron (Miles’ sister, Trish) were all in attendance. Jasmine Cephas Jones and Andrew Chapelle got to reunite from their last time working together on Hamilton as they play opposite of each other as friend co-workers in the series.
The 2018 film was written as a love letter to Oakland and features some of the best bay area music out there and the series is no different. Because Casal and Diggs are real friends they share real experiences growing up in the Bay and wanted to put an accurate representation of where they come from on-screen.
“The music and the culture of the bay is so beautiful and so multidimensional and complex… I think it’s been put on the map many different times by many different artists but never quite in this way so we wanted to add a little sauce to it and really just show love to so many artists and so many culture creators and innovators the bay has to offer,” said Rafael Casal.
Producer Keith Calder spoke about the underlying message of the series when talking about how important it is for stories to be told that deal with the aftermath of a loved one being locked up and what that experience is like. He also touched on how the US plays a significant factor in that corrupt prison system as it has the highest incarceration rates in the world.
“The United States has the highest incarceration rates in the world and it’s something that’s taken for granted as an unchangeable fact and we don’t believe that to be true,” said Calder. “We think that if people see the impact on not just the people inside the jail but the tens of millions of people that are indirectly affected either being a family member there or someone in the community or really the long extent of prison once you leave incarceration, too.”
The series puts a face and name to the need for change in America. Audiences who may not have empathy for drug users will hopefully walk away with a more open mindset after they fall in love with the characters in the show.
Guests from the premiere also included Oakland native, Kehlani, where she talked about her new song with T-Pain ‘I Like Dat’ which they performed on Jimmy Kimmel LIVE June 10th! Of course, Ron Cephas Jones was also there in support of his daughter’s performance on screen as well as Brandee Evans and Dascha Polanco.
If you like shows like On My Block and films like Do The Right Thing then you’ll binge Blindspotting in no time. Blindspotting is now available to stream on STARZ.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCtdIC666Ec
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