Our friends at Gothamist found a video that introduces a new holiday group that could save New Yorkers from Santacon — Santanacon. The stunt, created by comedy group Late Night Basement, pays winking homage to Carlos Santana, the singer of the 1999 Grammy-winning hit single “Smooth.” They mimic traditional Santa revelers, but instead of oversized red suits and white fluffy beards, they rock eclectic hats, brightly-patterned clothes, endless sunglasses, mullets and guitars.
Santanacon may be a comedic stunt, but it touches upon the actual devoted fan following of the singer. This September, someone began a Kickstarter campaign to raise $200,000 to host SMOOTHcon 2016 — a convention for Carlos Santana nerds, particularly fans of his collaboration with Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20 — where the song “Smooth” would have played on replay throughout the entire event. Sadly, the campaign was unsuccessful, having raised only $624 of the $200,000 needed. SMOOTHcon may have been a bust, but at least we have Santanacon.
