By Samantha Smith
For the first time since 2019, Federal Frenzy returned to downtown Youngstown on April 23. Featuring a multitude of musical acts, food trucks and local vendors, the free event hosted some big-ticket names such as Hunny, The Labra Brothers and more.
Jordan Record, events lead for Penguin Productions and senior communications major, shared how long the organization has hosted Federal Frenzy and how she felt about having an event in-person again.
“This is our eighth annual Federal Frenzy, counting the two years that we went online,” she said. “I believe 2015 was the first Federal Frenzy, and we’re just excited to bring it back in person this year.”
Record detailed what preparation was like leading up to the big event.
“It’s a lot of sticky notes, it’s a lot of different colors, and we just put a sticky note for every week from whenever we start [planning] it. So November, December, leading up to the week after the event and just everything that needs done for each team,” she said.
Hunny, a band from Los Angeles, headlined Federal Frenzy this year. Jake Goldstein, guitarist for Hunny, explained what he thought about the event upon first hearing about it.
“It’s cool that there’s a community gathering of this size here. Like, it’s really cool that there’s multiple stages, vendors — stuff like that is important. It’s important to have arts, culture and community. I feel like not enough places do it,” he said.
Having never been to Youngstown, Goldstein added why he and the group were excited to perform that night.
“We’ve been to Ohio many times, but never seen Youngstown, so we’re really excited to see what it’s like and meet all the people and have some fun playing the outdoor stage,” he said.
The event had three stages for all musical performances: Penguin Productions Main Stage, the Summit Stage and the Bouncing Back Stage. Artists including Black Wolf and The Thief, Candace Campana, the Shootouts and JD Eicher played the Summit Stage.
The Band Hannah, Lexi Kays, Shelby Olive, The Super Bass, The Smokey Honey Bluesband, Riley Burke, Matt Jackson and Chanelle Kazadi played the Bouncing Back Stage.
The YSU Contemporary Ensemble, Where’s Winona Now?, Fifth and Aurora, Spirit of the Bear, The Labra Brothers and Hunny played the Penguin Productions Main Stage.
Along with the musical aspect of the event, multiple vendors and food trucks were there. Food trucks included One Hot Cookie, the Alternative Food Truck and the Big Green Food Truck. The local vendors had their own spot during the event called the Vendors Market.
Activities for the public provided at Federal Frenzy included Penguin Prize Pong Toss, Paint a Penguin, canvas painting and keychain making.
For more information on Penguin Productions and its future events, visit its website.
