Cowboy Bebop battles Mexican boxers and Post Malone for top thing to do in Phoenix this week

Ready for the weekend? Well, it's on its way regardless so you might as well spend a little time weighing your options.

There's a ton of music going on, from Beck at Footprint Center with Phoenix and Japanese Breakfast to ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd playing Talking Stick Resort Arena on the brilliantly titled Sharp Dressed Simple Man Tour (insert chef's kiss here) and George Benson breezin' through Chandler.

We've also got record release celebrations for two of Arizona's finest (Mega Ran dropping his first children's album at the Musical Instrument Museum and Izzy Mahoubi releasing an EP at Valley Bar).

You can find more information on those concerts in our handy August concert guide. Our weekend picks include a gaming convention, a boxing match and a rapper on fire.

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Post Malone

Post Malone will bring his If Y'all Weren’t Here, I’d Be Crying Tour to Phoenix in support of one of this year's most anticipated albums, "Austin."

The 2023 North America run will feature music from the Grammy-nominated multiplatinum superstar's forthcoming album as well as fan favorites in what we've been told is "a completely reimagined show." Malone issued a statement promising "some cool new production, new songs and a very very handsome man up on stage." He means himself.

This is the rapper's first tour featuring a live band and it's getting great reviews. As a critic in Milwaukee noted, "Despite his intimidating appearance, adorned with tattoos from head to toe, he exuded warm and endearing golden retriever energy."

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12. Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, 2121 N. 83rd Ave., Phoenix. Resale ticket prices vary. 602-254-7200, livenation.com.

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Game On Expo in Phoenix

Game On Expo has been billed as Arizona's largest gaming and anime convention, a three-day multimedia event with tournaments, anime panels, competitive cosplay, rock band karaoke and free arcade games and pinball machines.

Those tournaments range from the Classic Tetris World Championship Desert Qualifier to the Game On Retro World Championship and the Super Smash Bros Ultimate tournament.

Celebrity guests include Nolan North (the voice of Nathan Drake in the Uncharted video games), Steve Blum (the voice of Spike Siegel in the anime series Cowboy Bebop), Daisuke Tsuji (the voice of Jin Sakai in the Ghost of Tsushima game) and Mega Ran (who appears to be having quite the weekend).

Details: 1-10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 11; 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13. Phoenix Convention Center South Building, 33 S. Third St. $70 weekend pass; $40 Friday; $50 Saturday; $45 Sunday. gameonexpo.com.

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World Junior Lightweight Championship at Desert Diamond Arena

Top Rank Boxing presents the World Junior Lightweight Championship, with three-division world champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete defending his World Boxing Organization junior lightweight world title against former two-division world champion Oscar Valdez in an all-Mexican battle for the belt.

After a recent training session at The BXNG Club in San Diego, Navarrete talked about what defending this title meant to him, as quoted in an article at British Boxing News. "What has been missing in my career is precisely a victory against someone like Valdez," he said. "It would fill me with pride to be part of such an iconic fight between Mexicans and come out victorious."

Details: 3:45 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12. Desert Diamond Arena, 9400 W. Maryland Ave., Glendale. $35 and up. 623-772-3800, desertdiamondarena.com.

Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495. Follow him on Twitter @EdMasley.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Best events in Phoenix Aug. 11-13: Post Malone, nerd con, prize fight