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First Avenue loves an April Fools’ Day joke. 

The Minneapolis concert venue has made a few social media posts that were perhaps a bit too believable, said chief marketing officer Ashley Ryan. Marketing has since backed away from emailing out fake press releases. 

But when the team posted about a “Trader Joe’s vs. Aldi Rave” on April 1, set for the nonexistent April 31, people knew it wasn’t real and were still stoked. An Instagram post garnered nearly 12,000 likes and over a hundred comments. 

That’s when First Avenue decided to make the event a reality. 

“Because everything is so much all the time, why not just have a night that's Trader Joe's versus Aldi?” Ryan said. “Like, what does that mean? Who knows?” 

First Avenue has held dance nights since its start, hence the tagline “Your downtown danceteria since 1970.” 

Ryan said themed dance parties have grown in popularity in the last few years. In addition to events centered around music genres or artists, First Avenue has hosted a “Shrek”-themed rave and dance nights inspired by the popular TV series “Heated Rivalry.” 

“It feels like there is a bit of a resurgence of dance culture or people going to dance nights, and I personally love that. I think they're such a great space for community building. And community building means literally just a night out with your friends sometimes, like going out and being joyful and having fun,” Ryan said. 

For the Friday event, DJ Hampster Dance will play music aimed at encapsulating the vibes of both Trader Joe’s and Aldi. It will also include themed décor and drinks like a “quarter for a cart” cocktail and “aisle of shame” shot. 

Hawaiian shirts are encouraged if you’re Team Trader Joe’s — a nod to its employee uniforms. 

First Avenue’s marketing team spent time in both grocery stores researching for the event. Neither Aldi nor Trader Joe’s was involved in organizing. 

The dance party is set for Friday night at the First Avenue Mainroom. One dollar from each ticket sold will go to the Groveland Food Shelf in Minneapolis. 

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Feven Gerezgiher

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The first known dance party dedicated to the two grocery store chains takes place in Minneapolis on Friday night. 

First Avenue hosts 'Trader’s Joe’s vs. Aldi' dance party, turning April Fools’ joke into reality

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