When Colombia singer Karol G performed in Fresno in October 2022,<\/a> her concert not only went viralafter a fan gave birth during her show, but also surprised Save Mart Center management with its explosive sales.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were one of four markets in the country that they were considering rolling to a second show\u201d along with New York, Miami and Los Angeles, said Sean McIlhenny, assistant general manager and director of booking at Save Mart Center.<\/p>\n While the second Karol G show ultimately did not happen, McIlhenny said that the possibility illustrated how Fresno has emerged as capital for Latin music acts.<\/p>\n Karol G performs, bringing her Strip Love Tour to a packed house at the Save Mart Center Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2022 in Fresno.<\/p>\n McIlhenny said the venue had a similar scenario when RBD<\/a> \u2014 the Mexican Latin pop group that gained popularity from Televisa\u2019s telenovela, \u201cRebelde\u201d \u2014 brought its highly-anticipated \u201cSoy Rebelde Tour 2023\u201d to Fresno. The reunion tour, which took 15 years to come to fruition, sold out at Save Mart Center.<\/p>\n The RBD mania showed up for the much-anticipated \u2018Soy Rebelde Tour 2023\u2019 in Fresno<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThey wanted to go to a second date, but we didn\u2019t have the date available, so we couldn\u2019t get that one done,\u201d McIlhenny said.<\/p>\n The growth of Latin music as a top-selling genre act in the Central Valley is not a surprise.<\/p>\n Before the pandemic, there were few markets where the Latin acts could perform well and Fresno has always been a strong Latin market, McIlhenny said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were probably about 20 markets across the county that promoters felt comfortable to go to. We were one of the original 20,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n After the genre exploded in popularity, Latin artists like Fuerza Regida and Peso Pluma made Fresno a must stop.<\/p>\n Peso Pluma\u2019s September 2024 concert at the Save Mart Center in Fresno was his best-performing show of the tour, grossing $2,982,216 off 17,549 tickets sold, according to Pollstar News<\/u><\/a>. The sold-out performance set a high benchmark for his \u201c\u00c9xodo Tour<\/u>\u201c<\/a> in terms of gross revenue for the tour.<\/p>\n Peso Pluma, right, brings his Exodo Tour to the Save Mart Center Saturday night, Sept. 7, 2024 in Fresno.<\/p>\n Shakira\u2019s first Fresno concert at Valley Children\u2019s Stadium<\/a> earlier in August was the city\u2019s largest-ever concert in one night and the first at Valley Children\u2019s Stadium.<\/p>\n Shakira\u2019s sellout of a stadium concert at a venue of that size is a big deal for the Fresno market, said Bob Nocek, Save Mart Center genergal manager.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re thrilled to see the audience turn out for the Shakira show, because anything that we can do to elevate Fresno presence as a market is always welcome,\u201d Nocek said.<\/p>\n Save Mart Center, which opened its door in November 2003, has consistently sold out top Latin artists such as Marco Antonio Solis, Juanes, Fuerza Regida, Pitbull, Man\u00e1<\/a>, Karol G, Peso Pluma and Junior H.<\/p>\n These three Latin crooners converted the Save Mart Center into a full-blown pachanga<\/a><\/p>\n Pitbull during his performance at the Save Mart Center on Feb. 7, 2020 before the coronavirus pandemia. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re really seen by agents and managers and promoters as a major Latin market,\u201d Nocek said. \u201cThey want to make sure Fresno is part of their tours, because they know they\u2019re going to sell a lot of tickets. They know there\u2019s an audience and demand here.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n The venue\u2019s capacity for concerts ranges from 13,000 to 15,000 seats, depending on the staging. The other arena in the city, Selland Arena, which has had its share of Latin concerts like J Balvin in 2018, has a seating capacity of 10,220.<\/p>\n Los Tigres del Norte will be performing at Selland Arena in October with \u201cLa Loteria Tour.\u201d Fresno\u2019s Saroyan Theatre, with a capacity of about 2,350 seats, has also host a variety of Latino concerts. Pancho Barraza, Marisela and Pedro Fernandez will be performing at the theatre in October.<\/p>\n J Balvin en esta foto de archivo en uno de sus conciertos en en el Selland Arena en Fresno el 19 de septiembre del 2018. El cantante colombiano J Balvin junto a la argentina Mar\u00eda Becerra ponen acento latino al arranque de los Grammy. Ellos cantaron su \u00e9xito \u201c\u00bfQu\u00e9 M\u00e1s Pues?\u201d <\/p>\n Until August, the Save Mart Center arena had been the largest concert venue for any artist to perform in the San Joaquin Valley. Adding Valley Children\u2019s Stadium to the mix of concert venues in Fresno opens the doors to bring artists doing stadium tours to the Central Valley.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a believer in the rising tide theory. And I think getting a stadium show in the market may turn some heads in the industry, and get people thinking even a little bigger about Fresno, which is always something we\u2019re trying to do as well,\u201d Nocek said.<\/p>\n Shakira\u2019s sold-out stadium concert proves Latin music\u2019s drawing power in Fresno<\/a><\/p>\n And Fresno\u2019s central location in California contributes to its advantage.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you don\u2019t play somewhere in the middle of the state, you\u2019re kind of missing a big chunk of the audience,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd fortunately, we\u2019ve got the biggest capacity of the other sort of central arenas. And we\u2019re really in a great spot where you can kind of cover everything from Stockton to Bakersfield by playing a Fresno date.\u201d<\/p>\n In July, the iconic Mexican rock band Man\u00e1 added Fresno stop to their highly anticipated tour \u201cVivir sin Aire\u201d tour after \u201coverwhelming\u201d fan demand, coming to Fresno\u2019s Save Mart Center for the seventh time and selling out each time.<\/p>\n Fan sees dream come true at Man\u00e1\u2019s concert in Fresno. The concert was sold out<\/a><\/p>\n El vocalista y guitarrista de Man\u00e1, Fher Olvera, se presenta durante su gira M\u00e9xico Lindo y Querido en el Save Mart Center el viernes 1 de diciembre de 2023 en Fresno.<\/p>\n Like Man\u00e1, Gloria Trevi or Fuerza Regida, Nocek said, a lot of Latin artist have been playing at the arena multiple times over the years.<\/p>\n Junior H<\/a> is returning to Save Mart Center in October after a 2024 sellout.<\/p>\n Nocek said Latinos in the Central Valley are \u201ca critical part of the market for us here at Save Mart Center.\u201d<\/p>\n Tito Double P sells out Save Mart Center his first time in Fresno<\/a><\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Genre has exploded<\/h2>\n
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Central location<\/h2>\n
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