Cleveland's biggest Labor Day weekend party returns to Mall C this Sunday, and this year's fifth annual Pop Up in the Park is pairing a stacked concert lineup with a public health push. Grammy Award-winning artist Ashanti and rapper Fabolous headline the downtown festival, which runs from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. with gates opening at 2 p.m., featuring live music, food, vendors, and a fireworks finale to close out the night.
A Cleveland City Council Facebook post is available online, while a Facebook post from Griffin himself says he is sponsoring the event. Tickets are available at popupinthepark.com.
But the concert is only the public face of a larger Wellness Weekend running Friday through Sunday. Attendees who participate in Wellness Weekend receive two complimentary Community Access tickets to Sunday's main event, according to the festival's official website.
A Heart-Health Mission Behind the Music
The festival is co-organized with the Make Them Know Your Name Foundation, a Cleveland nonprofit founded in 2019 by Cleveland Browns All-Pro cornerback Denzel Ward and his mother, Nicole Ward, after Denzel's father, Paul Ward, died of sudden cardiac arrest, as reported by Essence. Since its founding, the foundation has trained more than 35,000 people in hands-only CPR and provided AED machines to local facilities, per the same outlet.
Nicole Ward, who also serves on the NFL Smart Heart Sports Coalition, championed Ohio House Bill 47, an enacted Ohio law requiring Ohio public and private schools to have AEDs and emergency preparedness plans and requiring staff and coaches to learn CPR and AED use. The push for widespread screening access reflects stark regional disparities: nearly 60% of Black adults in the United States live with cardiovascular disease, and Black Ohioans face an 18% higher death rate from heart disease than white residents, according to the Association of Black Cardiologists. Ohio ranks 12th worst in the nation for cardiovascular disease-related deaths, the group notes.
Healthcare alliance partners embedded in the festival's clinical screening village include Cleveland Clinic, MetroHealth, Care Alliance Health Center, and the City of Cleveland Department of Public Health, according to the event's official site. Cleveland Clinic's Center for Infant and Maternal Health and its Heart, Vascular and Thoracic Institute are directly involved in the on-site screenings.
Where the Concert Fits Into a Bigger Downtown Weekend
Mall C, also known as Strawbridge Plaza, is the festival site, making it a fitting stage for the event.
This year's concert also overlaps with the annual Cleveland National Air Show, running September 5 through 7 at nearby Burke Lakefront Airport. The nearby air show is also scheduled during the festival weekend.
The festival has built a track record of drawing major national R&B and hip-hop acts to downtown Cleveland. Last year's fourth annual event featured Dru Hill, Adina Howard, and Carl Thomas.
