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Your Guide to Upcoming Music Festivals Across the Country

Haley Kurisky
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Cassie Schafman, Matt Hoffman

(From left) Cassie Schafman and Matt Hoffman, both passionate about music, covered Free Press Summer Festival 2016 for The Buzz. Cassie sings and is a photographer and Matt DJs under the stage name Matt Murdock. See their blog post here

Upcoming music festivals across the country include: 

April 14-23: Coachella in Indio, California 

  • Headliners: Bastille, Radiohead, Lady Gaga, Tove Lo, Mac Miller, and DJ Snake
  • Also performing: The XX, Lorde, Kendrick Lamar, Two Door Cinema Club, and DJ Khaled
  • Special features: Camping, art, charity donations and a Ferris wheel

April 22-23: Something Wonderful in Dallas, Texas 

  • Headliners: Porter Robinson, Borgore, and DJ Snake
  • Also performing: Audien, 3LAU
  • Special features: Charging stations and roaming food vendors

April 28-May 7: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana 

  • Headliners: Stevie Wonder, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Maroon 5, Lorde, Snoop Dogg, and Meghan Trainor
  • Also performing: Usher; Kings of Leon; Pitbull; Dave Matthews; Earth, Wind, and Fire
  • Special features: New Orleans food stands, craft and art tents, vendors, Gospel and Blues tents, cultural shows/events

May 3-7: SunFest in West Palm Beach, Florida 

  • Headliners: Blink-182, Weezer, Macklemore, Snoop Dog, Flo Rida, Fetty Wap, and Tori Kelly
  • Also performing: Jon Bellion, X Ambassadors, 3 Doors Down
  • Special features: lIve artist demonstrations, floating bars, lounges, and fireworks shows

May 19-21: Hangout Fest in Gulf Shores, Alabama 

  • Headliners: Charli XCX, Chance the Rapper, Frank Ocean, Lil Yachty, and Mumford & Sons
  • Also performing: Weezer, Twenty One Pilots, MGMT, and Dillon Francis
  • Special features: beach volleyball, carnival rides, art installations, a hammock beach, and a wedding chapel for anyone interested

June 2-4: Governors Ball Music Festival in New York, New York 

  • Headliners: Chance the Rapper, Lorde, Childish Gambino, Wiz Khalifa, and Tove Lo
  • Also performing: Charli XCX, Bleachers, Arizona, and Flume
  • Special features: mini golf, silent discos, life-size board games, charity volunteer partnerships

June 3-4: Free Press Summer Fest in Houston, Texas 

  • Headliners: Flume, G-Eazy, Lorde, Jon Bellion, and Tove Lo
  • Also performing: Charli XCX, Cage the Elephant, and Grouplove
  • Special features: food trucks, photobooths, hydration stations, free Ben and Jerry’s ice cream
  • (See coverage on last year’s FPSF.)

June 8-11: Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tennessee 

  • Headliners: U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Weeknd, Chance the Rapper, Flume, and Lorde
  • Also performing: Cage the Elephant, The XX, Travis Scott, and Major Lazer
  • Special features: comedy shows, camping, art installations, and a 5k

June 15-18: Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware 

  • Headliners: Twenty One Pilots, Flume, The Weeknd, Chance the Rapper, Bob Dylan, Kesha, and Muse
  • Also performing: Cashmere Cat, Weezer, Waka Flocka Flame, and Dillon Francis
  • Special features: camping, on-site brewery, a coffeehouse, a market, and a silent concert

Sept. 15-17: KAABOO in Del Mar, California 

  • Headliners: Red Hot Chili Peppers, P!nk, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Muse
  • Also performing: David Guetta, Jason Derulo, Kesha, and Weezer
  • Special features: a comedy club, a spa, a pool and beach access, and art

Something to look out for: Desert Trip 2017

Last year, a lot of rock “greats” (including Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan) came together in the desert to perform in a big festival that was dubbed “Old-Chella,” the “Coachella for old people.” I was hoping to go but in the end didn’t get tickets, so hopefully this year I can score some tickets. The festival is expensive and the rock world is unclear if the festival will even happen again this year, but if it does, be ready! Tickets sell out very quickly. If the festival happens, Rolling Stone comments on who they’d like to see perform. 

Which festivals are you most looking forward to this year?

See live music picks by Haley this month.

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