Atmosphere, Arrested Development and 4-H Day: What to know about day 3 of the State Fair

If you’re waiting for the right day to hit the Minnesota State Fair, Saturday promises to be a busy day packed with good weather, music and events that showcase livestock, art and robotics.

Large crowds often descend on the Twin Cities during State Fair weekends, and we’re tracking whether we’ll break any attendance records here. The National Weather Service predicts the stars, and clouds, will align for gorgeous weather today, with highs in the 60s.

“In addition, per MPCA [Minnesota Pollution Control Agency], air quality through the weekend into early next week is expected to remain in the Green/Good category as wildfire conditions over western Canada and the western US have improved,” the NWS forecast read.

Fair gates open at 7 a.m. and close at 11 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults 13 and 64, and $18 for younger and older attendees.

Thousands of attendees will celebrate youth development programs through 4-H Day. Youth will show off exhibits that focus on music, livestock and robotics to celebrate.

Want to know what goes into making a radio broadcast? Attendees have a chance on Saturday, which also marks Hubbard Broadcasting day. Radio stations and podcasts will gather for live programming and music performances at Dan Patch Park, including a performance of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” by the Children’s Theatre Company.

At the Minnesota Star Tribune booth, the lineup starts at 10 a.m., when visual arts reporter and critic Alicia Eler interviews crop artists Juve Meza, Marta Shore and Laura Melnick. Our mascot Stribby will waddle through at 11 a.m., and columnist Laura Yuen will talk to former Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Alan Page at noon. Will they talk about cabins or maple syrup making or the Vikings? You’ll have to check it out.

Check out the full stage calendar for all 12 days of the fair.

If you’re heading to the fair, you must read our Taste team’s review of all 80-plus new fair foods. They tried every single one and rated them.

They found some new trends: spice fans will find legitimate heat, there was a surprising amount of pizza roll-adjacent fare, pickles and hot honey aren’t going anywhere and there were a lot of fresh, summery tomatoes found all around. We also have two tools to help: a map of where to find the new foods and a State Fair Bot to help you settle on what to eat.

Grandstand: Minneapolis’ pioneering indie hip-hop duo Atmosphere, whose annual Soundset festival drew 30,000-plus fans to the fairgrounds in the 2010s, performs at the fair for the first time ever to celebrate its 30th anniversary and new album, “Jestures.” And what cool “friends” they’ll have with them, with Cypress Hill of “Insane in the Brain” fame and another veteran L.A. group, the Pharcyde, plus Lupe Fiasco and DJ Abilities. (5 p.m., $54-$70, etix.com)

Free: There’s more classic hip-hop on tap at the Bandshell, where Grammy-winning Atlanta group Arrested Development spends its first of two nights performing its positivity-preaching early-’90s MTV hits “Tennessee” and “People Everyday” a songs from an aptly titled new album, “Adult Contemporary Hip-Hop” (8:30 p.m.).