About Us

Where Oakland community & arts meet.

We strive to be the premier Oakland First Fridays Event as the epicenter for the community to come together to celebrate, sustain & support the arts.

Oakland First Fridays is Oakland's nonprofit signature monthly celebration of arts, culture, food, music, and community. It happens on the first Friday of the month from 5pm-9pm on Telegraph Avenue from 22nd to 27th Street. It draws up to 30,000 people from Oakland and the surrounding areas to celebrate our unique community. It is a free event open to people of all ages, backgrounds, and lifestyles. We keep vendor fees low so we can create opportunities and reduce barriers to entry for Oakland’s small businesses and artistic entrepreneurs. Monthly themes focus on the communities of Oakland including LGBTQ Pride, Black Love, Latin Pride, Youth, Women and more

Mission

We support Oakland creators.‍
Our mission is create a free, family-friendly, inclusive gathering for our community. Our goal is create a safe space for all, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or background. Oakland First Fridays serves as an incubator for small businesses, artists and performers alike. Every month we come together to provide a relatively affordable platform that allows our vendors to showcase their work, network with other business owners and connect with the community. Oakland First Fridays is a driver of economic activity for brick-and-mortar businesses as well as our vendors.
‍

Event History

The Oakland First Fridays festival has its roots in a number of community events, including the Community Council (a group of local vendors), a collective of gallery owners now know as Art Murmur and “The 23rd Street Fair” organized by the Rock Paper Scissors collective in 2006. As Art Murmur evolved into a citywide gallery crawl, the Community Council developed the Oakland First Fridays festival on Telegraph Avenue in 2011. It grew quickly in popularity and size, and in 2013 the Koreatown/Northgate Oakland Community Benefit District (KONO) assumed responsibility for producing the festival each month.
‍

Social Impacts of First Fridays:

1. Marketing the KONO District: Attracts shoppers to the area.
2. Small Business Incubation: Supports the growth and development of small businesses.
3. Non-Profit Connector: Facilitates connections and collaborations among non-profit organizations.
4. Community Engagement: Encourages active participation and engagement within the community.
5. Platform for Performers and Organizations Working with At-Risk Youth: Provides a space for performers and organizations focused on supporting at-risk youth.
6. Job Creation: Creates job opportunities, both in brick-and-mortar establishments and through vendor-related employment.
7. Crime Reduction: Enhances the sense of safety and reduces crime during First Fridays.