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These are the 7 best concerts in Houston this week

ACL Austin City Limits Music Festival 2016 Young the Giant

Young the Giant is at White Oak Music Hall on Sunday, July 7.

Photo by Daniel Cavazos

There's nothing more American than celebrating its independence with some cold brews while taking in a show on a hot summer's day. That's exactly what music fans will get this week, with several high-profile shows set at outdoor venues featuring some of the best and brightest rising talents on the tour circuit right now.

CultureMap's biggest, best, and most notable shows of the week are:

Freedom Over Texas
The official Houston Fourth of July party, Freedom Over Texas, is back with all you need to celebrate the country's independence from royal rule. This is the 30th year the City of Houston has held fireworks and music in Eleanor Tinsley Park and Sam Houston Park, and the always family friendly event usually features some decent talent.

This year, it's country star Jake Owen and multimedia star Kellie Pickler. Owen has hit No. 1 on the country charts six times for hits such as "Barefoot Blue Jean Night," "Alone with You," and "The One That Got Away." His last No. 1 album was the aptly named 2016 album American Love. Pickler gained fame on reality TV, first on American Idol, then as the winner of Dancing with the Stars with partner Derek Hough. She currently hosts the TV show Pickler & Ben.

Freedom Over Texas takes place at Eleanor Tinsley Park, located at 18-3600 Allen Pkwy., on Thursday, July 4. Tickets are $8 before July 3, $10 on the day of the show. Gates open at 4 pm.

Pat Green at 4th Fest
Texas country fans looking for fun and fireworks will feel at home in New Caney this Fourth of July as part of that fast-growing community's 4th Fest at Valley Ranch Town Center. The dream of developers is for the grassy knoll hosting the event to become the next Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, with plans to build a 16,000-capacity amphitheater on the same spot. For now, attendees of this patriotic bash will gather to take in some fine Texas country talent, headlined by a Lone Star favorite in Pat Green, along with a barbecue cook-off, cirque acts, and fireworks at 9:45 pm.

Pat Green headlines the 4th Fest celebration at Valley Ranch Town Center, located at 11985 TX-99 in New Caney, on Thursday, July 4. Max Stalling, Jody Booth, and JB & The Moonshine Band open. Tickets are $25, plus fees. Gates open at 2 pm.

Houston Symphony does Queen
"Bohemian Rhapsody" gets the symphonic treatment when the Houston Symphony takes on the best of Freddie Mercury and company with a night of Queen songs. This one will feature a rock band accompaniment and a singer belting out the many hit songs, including "We Will Rock You," "We Are the Champions," "Bicycle Race," "Somebody to Love," and more. Call this performance a warm-up for the real thing: Queen (guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor) will perform with Adam Lambert at Toyota Center later this month.

The Houston Symphony plays the music of Queen at Jones Hall, located at 615 Louisiana St. on Friday, July 5, and Saturday, July 6. Tickets start at $43, plus fees. Show starts at 7:30 pm.

Charly Bliss brings the buzz to HOB
One of the buzziest bands on the alt-rock circuit, the Connecticut-based Charly Bliss first made waves with their power-pop 2017 debut, Guppy, but made an even stronger artistic statement with this year's follow-up, Young Enough, which critics are hailing as one of the year's best.

Making music in the vein of mid-'90s alt-rock, the band has opened for bands like Sleater-Kinney, Death Cab for Cutie, and Veruca Salt. They've taken on a much bigger sound with Young Enough, more pop leaning and much bigger in sound, the melodies and guitar crunch complementing the vocals of lead singer Eva Hendricks. Take a listen to "Capacity" or "Hard to Believe" as evidence.

Charly Bliss headlines the Bronze Peacock at House of Blues, located at 1204 Caroline St., on Friday, July 5. Emily Reo opens. Tickets are $15, plus fees. Doors open at 7 pm.

Summer Block Party in The Woodlands
Now this is how you do an R&B and soul throwback show. According to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion site, the Summer Block Party has sold out every year since 2015. Based on the line-up, this year will likely be no exception with Grammy Award winner Jill Scott headlining, joined by the smooth sounds of '90s megastars Boyz II Men, and multi-platinum singer Faith Evans, former wife of the Notorious B.I.G.

Scott was first discovered by The Roots in the late-'90s and went on to collaborate with some of the biggest names in the genre, later winning two Grammys and hitting No. 1 twice behind her soulful sound and personal lyrics. She will be joined by another Philly act that rocketed to stardom in Boyz II Men, who at one point were one of the biggest acts in the world, producing megahits "Motownphilly," "End of the Road," and "On Bended Knee," and essentially paving the way for the late-'90s boy band explosion. Meanwhile, Faith Evans shot to stardom following the death of her hip-hop star husband with the tribute song "I'll Be Missing You" but later establishing her cred as a vocal force on future albums.

Jill Scott, Boyz II Men, and Faith Evans are at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, located at 2005 Lake Robbins Dr. in The Woodlands, on Saturday, July 6. Tickets start at $29.50, plus fees. Gates open at 5 pm.

CultureMap show of the week: Santana
"It's hard to say what makes a man a legend — until you see him at work." That's what we wrote following one of the best RodeoHouston performances this past year by Santana. Thankfully, the Latin guitar hero returns to the Houston area for an encore, extended performance with his exciting and electrifying band of high caliber musicians, that surely will have the audience grooving along to 50 years(!) of hits.

Santana's back with the new release Africa Speaks, but it's his long and varied catalog in addition to his next-level skills that will put people in seats. And no doubt, there'll be plenty of doobies at the show. The Doobie Brothers, that is, as the classic rock group makes the perfect complementary act next to Santana's fret-slaying heroics.

Santana returns to Houston to play the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, located at 2005 Lake Robbins Dr. in The Woodlands, on Sunday, July 7. The Doobie Brothers will also perform. Tickets start at $47, plus fees. Gates open at 5:30 pm.

CultureMap recommends: Fitz the Giant?
Fans of high energy alt-rock will get their fill with the co-headline lawn show featuring Fitz and the Tantrums and Young the Giant. Both acts have been survivors in an age when many audiences have left this type of music behind. But both are exceptions, producing some of the catchiest pop-rock songs of the last decade.

Fitz got a huge boost by being named by Ellen DeGeneres as one of her favorite bands and later using the song "The Walker" for promos during her run as an Oscars host. Young the Giant scored a hit with the propulsive 2011 song "My Body" and are on a similar run with their latest, "Superposition (In the Open)," from their latest album, Mirror Master.

Fitz and the Tantrums and Young the Giant co-headline the lawn at White Oak Music Hall, located at 2915 N. Main St., on Sunday, July 7. Tickets start at $45, plus fees. Gates open at 5 pm.

Country star Jake Owen headlines Freedom Over Texas on Thursday, July 4.

Photo courtesy of Freedom Over Texas

Country star Jake Owen headlines Freedom Over Texas on Thursday, July 4.

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RIP, Chuck

Actor Chuck Norris, star of 'Walker, Texas Ranger,' dies at 86

Courtesy photo

Chuck Norris, star of "Walker, Texas Ranger," has died at 86.

Chuck Norris, the martial arts grandmaster and action star whose roles in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and other television shows and movies made him an iconic tough guy — sparking internet parodies and adoration from presidents — has died at 86.

Norris died Thursday, in what his family described as a “sudden passing.”

“While we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace,” the family said in a statement posted to social media.

Before he would become a star in movies and on TV, Norris was wildly successful in competitive martial arts. He was a six-time undefeated World Professional Middleweight Karate champion. He also founded his own Korean-based American hard style of karate, known sometimes as Chun Kuk Do, and the United Fighting Arts Federation, which has awarded more than 3,300 Chuck Norris System black belts worldwide. Black Belt magazine ultimately credited Norris in its hall of fame with holding a 10th degree black belt, the highest possible honor.

Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940, he grew up poor. At age 12, he moved with his family to Torrance, California, and joined the U.S. Air Force after high school, in 1958. It was during a deployment to Korea that he started training in martial arts, including judo and Tang Soo Do.

“I went out for gymnastics and football at North Torrance high,” he told The Associated Press in 1982. “I played some football, but I also spent a lot of time on the bench. I was never really athletic until I was in the service in Korea.”

After he was honorably discharged in 1962, he worked as a file clerk for Northrop Aircraft and applied to be a police officer, but was put on a waitlist. Meanwhile, he opened a martial arts studio, which expanded to a chain, with students including such stars as Bob Barker, Priscilla Presley, Donnie and Marie Osmond, and Steve McQueen, whom he later credited with encouraging him to get into acting.

From one studio to another
Norris made his film debut as an uncredited bodyguard in the 1968 movie “The Wrecking Crew,” which included a fight with Dean Martin. He had also crossed paths with Bruce Lee in martial arts circles. Their friendship — sometimes, as sparring partners — led to an iconic faceoff in the 1972 movie “Return of the Dragon,” in which Lee fights and kills Norris' character in Rome's Colosseum.

He went on to act in more than 20 movies, such as “Missing in Action,” “The Delta Force” and “Sidekicks.”

“I wanted to project a certain image on the screen of a hero. I had seen a lot of anti-hero movies in which the lead was neither good nor bad. There was no one to root for,” Norris said in 1982.

In 1993, he took on his most famed role, as a crime-fighting lawman in TV's “Walker, Texas Ranger.” The show ran for nine seasons, and in 2010, then-Gov. Rick Perry awarded him the title of honorary Texas Ranger. The Texas Senate later named him an honorary Texan.

“It’s not violence for violence’s sake, with no moral structure,” Norris told the AP in 1996, speaking about the show. “You try to portray the proper meaning of what it’s about — fighting injustice with justice, good vs. bad. … It’s entertaining for the whole family.”

Norris also made a surprise comedic appearance as a decisive judge in the final match of the 2004 movie “Dodgeball.” He only on occasion has taken acting roles in recent years, including 2012's “The Expendables 2” and the 2024 sci-fi action movie “Agent Recon.” He's due to appear in “Zombie Plane,” an upcoming film starring Vanilla Ice.

Chuck Norris: the man, the meme, the legend
It was around the time of “Dodgeball” that his toughman image became the stuff of legend, literally: “Chuck Norris Facts” went viral online with such wildly hyperbolic statements as, “Chuck Norris had a staring contest with the sun -- and won,” and, “They wanted to put Chuck Norris on Mt. Rushmore, but the granite wasn’t tough enough for his beard.”

Norris ultimately embraced the absurdity of the meme craze, putting together “The Official Chuck Norris Fact Book,” which combined his favorites with supposedly true stories and the codes he aimed to live by. He would also write books on martial arts instruction, a memoir, political takes, Civil War-era historical fiction and more.

“To some who know little of my martial arts or film careers but perhaps grew up with 'Walker, Texas Ranger,' it seems that I have become a somewhat mythical superhero icon,” Norris wrote in the forward to the fact book. “I am flattered and humbled.”

That book raised money for a nonprofit he founded with President George H.W. Bush that promoted martial arts instruction for kids.

The intentionally outlandish statements featured in the 2008 Republican presidential primary, when Norris endorsed Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and shot an ad playing on the “Chuck Norris facts.”

President Donald Trump's supporters later promoted Trump Facts in the same vein, and political pundits tried it as well, describing the commander-in-chief's decision to seize Venezuela's sitting president, Nicolas Maduro, as a “Chuck Norris Moment,” and its initial effect on oil prices a “Chuck Norris Premium.”

Norris was outspoken about his Christian beliefs and his support for gun rights, and backed political candidates for years — he even went skydiving with Bush for the former president's 80th birthday. As for Trump, Norris endorsed him in the 2016 general election and wrote guest columns praising him without explicitly endorsing him the in the days before the 2020 and 2024 elections.

Norris has five surviving children: stunt performers Mike and Eric with his late ex-wife Dianne Holechek, twins Dakota and Danilee with his wife Gena Norris, and Dina, the result of an early 1960s “one-night stand” revealed in his autobiography.

Norris celebrated his birthday just over a week before his death, posting a sparring video on Instagram.

“I don't age. I level up,” he wrote.

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