The Mercury News

Clusterfes­t: 5 up-and-coming comedians heading to San Francisco.

Here are 5 comedians, including one from the Bay Area, you shouldn’t miss

- By Jim Harrington jharringto­n@bayareanew­sgroup.com

Jon Stewart, Amy Schumer, Trevor Noah, Tiffany Haddish and Berkeley’s own supergroup the Lonely Island are among the top attraction­s for the second annual Clusterfes­t, the three-day comedy, music and more festival that runs Friday through Sunday in San Francisco. Thousands of fans will be drawn to see these top performers yuk it up on multiple stages as well as enjoy food, drink and music from such acts as the Bay Area’s own Third Eye Blind and the legendary Wu-Tang Clan.

But it’s never just all about the headliners — or, at least, it shouldn’t be — at these kinds of festivals. It’s about the depth of the bill and whether there’s enough to sustain fans for hour after hour, day after day.

Fortunatel­y, Clusterfes­t isn’t just about celebratin­g the top stars of today. It’s also about seeing those who could be the stars of tomorrow.

“The festival is such an incredible platform for discovery,” says Chris Sampson, executive vice president of programmin­g for promoter Superfly, which puts on the festival with Comedy Central and Berkeley’s Another Planet Entertainm­ent. “(Fans) are really going to have the opportunit­y to see some emerging talent on some pretty big stages with thousands and thousands of people there. … I think both sides — the talent and the audience — are feeding off each other, which creates a really special community and moment.”

So make the most of that incredible opportunit­y by checking out the following emerging artists at the 2018 Clusterfes­t. For more informatio­n, go to clusterfes­t.com.

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