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Cleto Escobedo III, the longtime bandleader and saxophonist for Jimmy Kimmel Live, co-creator of the late-night staple’s theme tune, and best friend of its host, has died at the age of 59.
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Kimmel broke the sad news on his social accounts, and gave a teary farewell to his good friend Tuesday night (Nov. 11) during his regular show. “Early this morning,” he writes on Instagram, “we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III. To say that we are heartbroken is an understatement. Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old. The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true. Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto’s wife, children and parents in your prayers.”
The cause of death has not been revealed, though Page 6 reports Escobedo was hospitalized last week, with Kimmel canceling his Thursday episode to be by his side.
Born Aug. 23, 1966 in Las Vegas, NV, Escobedo’s group, Cleto and the Cletones, has been the house band for Jimmy Kimmel Live! since the show’s inception in 2003.
Escobedo and Kimmel, however, go way back. The pair hit it off as kids, when Kimmel’s family moved to Sin City back in 1977, directly across the street, two houses over from a young Escobedo.
Kimmel was unable to hold back the tears, and he told of his best friend’s passing at the very top of Tuesday night’s Live. “We’ve been on the air for almost 23 years and I’ve had to do some hard monologues along the way. But this one’s the hardest,” he remarked.
They weren’t just friends. They were 24/7 besties, enjoying countless sleepovers, crank calls, backyard ballgames, and “we definitely gave each other many concussions,” he recounted.
Across 22 minutes, Kimmel told hilarious tales of youthful pranks, parties, bad advice, and much more, the lived stuff that occurs only when two people live out of each other’s pockets.
“We loved all the same things. Baseball, fishing, boxing, [Muhammad] Ali, Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Woody Allen, Michael McDonald, Huey Lewis, Stevie Wonder, and most of all, we loved David Letterman,” he admitted. “We never missed David Letterman. And the first time I was on the [Late Show with David Letterman] was 1999. It was a really big deal for both of us. That afternoon before the show, I was so nervous. I was walking in New York City, just walking fast, trying to burn off the nervous energy, and I called him just so we could be amazed together that this was happening and it was an amazing thing.”
As a saxophone player, he was nothing short of “phenomenal,” Kimmel enthused. “He was a child prodigy who would get standing ovations in junior high school, if you can imagine that.” Escobedo was a chip off the old block; his dad, too was a sax player in a band, but he called time on touring to spend more time with his family. “When Cleto junior became a professional musician, Cleto senior was thrilled, he got to live vicariously through his son,” Kimmel said. They’d become bandmates, too.
Junior enjoyed an early breakthrough with Paula Abdul, initially performing with the pop star then joining her label’s roster. Later, Kimmel pitched the late-night show to ABC, with Escobedo and his father auditioning together for the gig. It was a winning formula.
“I’ve often said that the single best thing about doing this show was getting the opportunity to allow Cleto senior to pick up where he left off in 1966 and become a musician again with his son,” he remarked.
Cleto’s parents, who were watching on, were, for 47 years, like his own folks. Only they never yelled at Kimmel, he quipped.
“Cherish your friends, we’re not here forever,” Kimmel explained, through tears. Live will take a break for several days to allow its leader and team time to grieve. Watch Kimmel’s eulogy below.
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Mashd N Kutcher’s next tune is a banger for a good cause.
The APRA Award-winning electronic music act dishes up the official tune for 2025 McHappy Day this Saturday (Nov. 15), the biggest annual fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) in Australia.
The bouncing cut captures the voices of children and their families staying at Ronald McDonald House in South Brisbane, and works in the iconic “ba da ba ba ba” jingle over keys, drums, funky electric guitar and a soaring synth line.
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“This song means a lot to me. Visiting the team and families at Ronald McDonald House was truly inspiring – their positivity, resilience and the way they support each other is incredible,” comments Mashd N Kutcher lead Matt James.
“Seeing the kids light up while playing instruments, sharing laughs and even singing the Macca’s jingle was magic,” he adds. “It was a privilege to bring a little fun into their day, and I think that magic shines through in the track. I hope it makes people smile and inspires them to get involved and donate to McHappy Day this Saturday.”
The track is live on Mashd N Kutcher and McDonald’s Australia’s social channels and will play in the burger chain’s 1,000-plus restaurants nationwide on the big day. Stream it, and watch footage of MNK’s visit to Ronald McDonald House below.
James knows more than most about the healing powers of music. The classically-trained Brisbane artist was diagnosed in 2023 with cancer, Multiple Myeloma, which forms in blood cells inside the bone marrow. A year later, in 2024, James and MNK made a roaring musical return with the full-length album Legacy.
It’s not the first MNK tie-in with Maccas. The lads sizzled with 2022’s “Ultimate Mix,” the music treat to accompany McDonald’s McFlurry with Cadbury’s, celebrating what was the chocolate specialist’s 100th year as an Australian favorite.
Since launching in 1991, McHappy Day has raised over A$79 million ($51 million), helping more than 69,000 families every year through RMHC, by funding various programs.
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SYDNEY, Australia — After a 17-year partnership, TEG makes it official by bringing Twenty3 Live into the fold.
TEG, the Sydney-based live entertainment, data and tech giant, snaps up Twenty3 Live, a leading marketing, media, sponsorship and activation agency.
The so-called “strategic acquisition” further enhances TEG’s in-house marketing and digital capability in its global touring portfolio, and is announced on the eve of AC/DC’s Australian POWER UP tour opener Wednesday night (Nov. 12) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, produced by TEG Van Egmond.
Through the new agreement, Twenty3 Live’s team of six music marketing professionals move across, led by long-standing marketing director Edwina Tarrant, who joined TEG’s Melbourne office in early October.
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Financial terms weren’t disclosed on the deal, which formalizes a relationship between TEG and Twenty3 Live, which, over nearly two decades, delivered marketing, media, and digital campaigns for many of Australia’s biggest concert tours, including TEG Dainty-produced treks for Bon Jovi, Eminem, George Michael, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry and more.
TEG Dainty Entertainment Company president and CEO Paul Dainty, whose business was acquired by TEG in 2016, is a major shareholder and long-serving director in Twenty3.
Meanwhile, TEG launches Ovation amp, a full-service, data-led creative agency that is said to unite expertise across media, digital, strategy, and storytelling within the group.
The new agency is led by Larissa Best, general manager, live entertainment and head of Ovation amp, whose team is “dedicated to amplifying the connection between artists, fans, and partners,” a statement reads.
As it expands commercially, Ovation amp will be expected to collaborate with promoters, artists, and brands to deliver creative strategy, data-led marketing, and more.
“This milestone represents an exciting evolution for our agency,” comments Michael Leeds, managing director of Twenty3 Group. “We’re excited to see our colleagues continue their journey within one of Australia’s leading entertainment businesses, and the outstanding work of the Twenty3 Live team has been recognised by TEG as integral to their future growth.”
According to TEG, all current client campaigns and major tours managed by Twenty3 Live will continue throughout the transition, with existing leadership and relationships maintained.
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SYDNEY, Australia — Secretly Distribution has its sights set on APAC, with the launch of a new regional office.
Based in Sydney, Australia, the independent music group’s APAC activities are led by Max Thomas, who rises to head of APAC, after leading Secretly Group’s APAC marketing and strategy for the past four years.
In that time, Thomas led album campaigns for the likes of Mitski, Bon Iver, Bright Eyes, Faye Webster, Folk Bitch Trio, Khruangbin, Japanese Breakfast, Mustafa, Sharon Van Etten, Toro y Moi, Wednesday and more throughout Australia, New Zealand and Asia.
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With Thomas at the helm, Secretly Distribution will focus “on supporting artists and labels throughout the Asia-Pacific region,” reads a statement.
As the company expands its global footprint (Secretly has existing offices in New York, Los Angeles and London), Secretly Distribution promotes Chris Cannon to VP of international strategy, reward for guiding the business to 30% revenue growth overseas, across both digital and physical formats, in the past year.
“I am thrilled to be leading the charge as Secretly Distribution continues expanding our global footprint to incorporate our new APAC office,” says Cannon in a statement. “As our distributed label roster expands not only in size, but in genre, geography and customer profile, SD continues to adapt accordingly.”
The new structure, led by Thomas, means the business can “localize our service whilst adopting a proactive approach in response to the organic growth we can see in fast developing markets such as the Philippines, Indonesia and China.”
The opportunities for collaboration in these markets are “vast, and we have only begun to scratch the surface,” Cannon continues.
Based in London, England, Cannon has overseen the development of Secretly’s Latin American strategy, and launched Cargo Independent Distribution, which Cargo Records, Secretly Distribution and Beggars Group created as a means to maintain and promote an independent path to market for physical music in the U.K.
A new marketing and campaigns manager in Southeast Asia will be recruited shortly, and between them the APAC team will oversee priority releases across the SD roster, including those on Australia-based labels such as Chapter Music and Spinning Top, and New Zealand labels Lil’ Chief Records and Flying Nun.
The new team will also guide relationships with long-time APAC distribution partners such as Leaplay (Korea), Rocket (Australia), Rhythm Method (New Zealand), Southbound (New Zealand) and Ultra-Vybe (Japan), plus key local retail partners with which Secretly Distribution works closely.
Formed more than 25 years ago, Secretly Distribution is part of the Secretly Group, which is headquartered in Bloomington, Indiana and which is parent to the likes of Secretly Canadian, Jagjaguwar, Dead Oceans, and Merge Records, through a 50% stake acquired earlier this year.
The distribution specialist recently struck a global partnership with high-quality vinyl leader Org Music; renewed its deal with Asthmatic Kitty Records; signed a global deal with Geoff Barrow and Redg Weeks’ Invada Records; scored a nomination for Distributor of The Year at the 2025 Libera Awards; and announced a global deal with Third Man Records.
The latest ARIA Albums Chart features, for the first time, an entry from Frankston, Victoria indie rock band the Belair Lip Bombs, the first Australian act signed to Third Man Records. The Belair Lip Bombs’ sophomore set Again opened at No. 25 on the national tally.
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It’s rare that the original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton: An American Musical is not No. 1 on Billboard’s weekly Cast Albums chart. (After all, it’s been No. 1 for 454 weeks out of the 528 it has been on the chart since its debut in 2015.) So when Hamilton is not No. 1 — as is the case this week — it’s notable.
But the title that bumps Hamilton down to No. 2 this week is actually another album related to the show. A 10-song highlights edition, Hamilton: 10 Shots, arrives at No. 1 on the Nov. 15-dated chart, with 17,000 equivalent album units earned in the United States in the week ending Nov. 6, according to Luminate.
The original Hamilton debuted at No. 1 on the Cast Albums chart dated Oct. 17, 2015, and has never left the chart.
Hamilton: 10 Shots was issued as a streaming set, digital download, CD and on an array of vinyl variants. It also debuts on a number of other Billboard charts: No. 3 on Vinyl Albums, No. 5 on Indie Store Album Sales, No. 6 on Top Album Sales, No. 6 on Top Current Album Sales and No. 28 on the overall Billboard 200.
Meanwhile, as for the original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton, it is No. 69 on the latest Billboard 200, spending its 528th consecutive week on the chart. It extends its record for the most weeks on the chart ever for a cast recording. It peaked at No. 2 in 2020, marking the highest-charting cast recording since Hair hit No. 1 in 1969.
The Billboard 200 and Cast Albums charts rank the most popular overall albums, and cast recordings, respectively, of the week in the U.S. based on multimetric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album.
As Donald Trump and his chaotic administration continue to unleash ICE agents to terrorize Black and Brown communities in the Windy City. The everyday struggle in the hood is still very much an issue, and G Herbo calls on a music legend to help him address it for his latest offering.
Linking up with Wyclef Jean for his visuals to “Emergency,” G Herbo and Clef show us how easy things can go left out on the streets of Chiraq even when police are called onto the scene of a tragedy as it’s every man for himself when survival and/or money is involved and residents are trying to make it through the day one way or another. Dope to see Wyclef back out on the rap scene in 2025.
From Chicago to New York, Dave East seems to be enjoying the life he’s created for himself, and in his clip to “Pablo,” the Harlem representative rolls out into the city in a big boy truck while breaking bread with his day-ones and flaunting the big-faced Benjis that he’s been earning ever since he stepped into the booth.
Check out the rest of today’s drops, including work from Thelonious featuring Conway The Machine, Cassie Veggies, and more.
G HERBO FT. WYCLEF JEAN & TURBO THE GREAT – “EMERGENCY”
DAVE EAST – “PABLO”
THELONIOUS FT. CONWAY THE MACHINE – “PRIMEMAGIC”
CASSIE VEGGIES – “BACK AGAIN”
IAMCOMPTON FT. ERIC BELLINGER – “NICE TO MEET YOU”
YUNG BREDDA – “INCH BY INCH”
LIL DANN – “JOHN GOTTI”
POPCAAN – “IMMORTAL LIFE”
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Photo: Getty
Trending on Billboard It’s not officially Grammy season until there’s some spirited debate about this year’s nominations — and here we are. On this week’s Billboard Pop Shop Podcast, Katie & Keith are chatting through the 2026 Grammy nominations, starting with the Big Four categories (album, record and song of the year, plus best new […]
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A flurry of earnings reports for the quarter ended Sept. 30 show a continued divide in the music landscape. Live music companies such as Live Nation and MSG Entertainment posted double-digit growth as concert demand surged, while HYBE and SM Entertainment also benefitted from strong concert revenues. Streaming also spiked once again, pushing Spotify and Universal Music Group (UMG) to double-digit revenue growth. Legacy media didn’t fare as well, however: iHeartMedia revenue slipped slightly, while SiriusXM leveraged cost-cutting to compensate for flat revenue.
Here’s a running list, in alphabetical order, of the music companies that released earnings results (as of Nov. 11) for the quarter ended Sept 30, 2025.
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Cumulus Media: The radio company’s revenue fell 11.5% to $180.3 million and net loss grew to $20.4 million from $10.3 million in the prior-year quarter. The advertising business remains “challenging for legacy media,” CEO Mary Berner said. Broadcast radio revenue sank 17.2% to $115.0 million. Digital revenue fell 2.6% to $39.0 million, though it was up 8.4% if the loss of The Daily Wire and Dan Bongino aren’t counted. Check out our full radio earnings roundup here.
Deezer: Revenue dropped 1% to $154 million as gains from self-paying users almost offset losses in business-to-business subscribers. Direct subscribers grew in number to 5.5 million, up nearly 10%, and direct subscription revenue increased 1.6% to $103 million. Revenue from partnerships fell 12.6% to $42 million and subscribers from these partnerships dropped 24.5% from the prior-year quarter. Go to the full article for more details.
HYBE: Tours by BTS member Jin and groups SEVENTEEN and TOMORROW X TOGETHER helped Q3 revenue rise 38% to $519 million, as strong concert revenue ($174 million) helped make up for recorded music’s 11.5% decline to $136 million. Operating loss was $30 million, a big turnaround from a $40 million operating profit a year earlier. More details in the full article.
iHeartMedia: CEO Bob Pittman was “pleased” with the performance and boasted of new partnerships with TikTok and Amazon Ads, which will expand the company’s podcast and advertising businesses, respectively. Revenue of $997 million was down 1.1% (up 2.8% excluding the prior-year period’s political advertising). Adjusted EBITDA was flat at $205 million. Podcast revenue jumped 22% to $140 million while the multi-platform group, which included broadcast radio, fell 5% to $591 million. Q4 guidance is a low-single-digit revenue decline. Find more details here.
Live Nation: As fans packed themselves into stadiums in record numbers, revenue rose 11% to $8.5 billion and adjusted operating income (AOI) grew 14% to $1.03 billion. Concerts revenue was up 11% to $7.3 billion. Ticketing revenue rose 15% to $798 million. Sponsorships revenue jumped 13% to $443 million. Importantly, increases in deferred revenue suggest Live Nation will experience additional growth into 2026. Read about the earnings here and check out Billboard’s follow-up article with additional details from the earnings call.
MSG Entertainment: Boosted by a record number of concerts at the Madison Square Garden arena, MSG Entertainment’s revenue jumped 14% to $158.3 million and adjusted operating income improved to $7.1 million from $1.9 million in the prior-year period. Revenue from concerts rose $8.3 million while sporting events revenue improved $6.8 million. Food and beverage revenue jumped 20%, or $3.9 million. Looking ahead, MSGE’s Christmas Spectacular, the company’s annual holiday production at Radio City Music Hall, is slated for 215 performances, up from 200 a year earlier.
Reservoir Media: Fiscal second quarter revenue of $45.4 million was up 7% organically, or 12% including acquisitions. Net income of $2.2 million was up from $0.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Music publishing revenue rose 8% to $30.9 million, while recorded music revenue jumped 21% to $13.0 million. The results prompted management to adjust upward its forecasts for full-year revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
SiriusXM: The satellite radio company’s stock price jumped 10% after it raised 2025 guidance for revenue, EBITDA and cash flow. Although it reported a 1% dip in revenue, the company rebounded from a loss to produce net income of $297 million; while subscriber revenue was down, cost-cutting and layoffs helped offset the decline. Adjusted EBITDA fell 2.5% to $676 million. CEO Jennifer Witz said she is “confident” that improvements will allow the company to reach its target of $1.5 billion of free cash flow by 2027. Check out Billboard’s coverage for more details.
SM Entertainment: Led by concerts and music releases from aespa and NCT WISH, revenue rose 33% to $237.3 million. Operating profit jumped 262% to $35.6 million. Recorded music rose 33% $71.4 million, while new album sales grew to 5.42 million from 3.61 million in the third quarter of 2024. And concert revenue rose 38% to $38.7 million despite the company having fewer concerts compared to the prior-year period. Go to the full article for more info.
Sony Music: Rising streaming income and the success of the anime series Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle helped Sony Music’s revenue jump 21% to $3.65 billion and operating income climb 28% to $776 million. Overall streaming revenues rose 12% in recorded music and 25% in the publishing division. Physical sales rose 6%. Looking ahead, Sony increased its full-year forecast for Sony Music’s sales by 6% to $13.3 billion. The full article has all the details.
Sphere Entertainment Co.: The Wizard of Oz and the Backstreet Boys boosted Sphere parent company’s revenue to $263 million and helped turn negative adjusted operating income (AOI) into $36 million of positive AOI. Oz has sold more than 1 million tickets to date, and showings of that title and other movies rose to 220 from 207 in the prior-year quarter. The Sphere segment itself posted an operating loss of $84 million — a $40 million improvement from a year ago. More details in the full article.
Spotify: The audio giant’s subscribers rose 12% to 281 million and gross margin improved by 56 basis points — 0.56 of a point — to 31.6%. Those improvements led revenue to increase 12% to $5 billion and gross profit to grow 9% to $1.84 billion. “We have the tools we need — pricing, product innovation, operational leverage, and eventually the ads turnaround — to deliver both revenue growth and profit expansion,” said CEO Daniel Ek. Check out our full story on the earnings release and our follow-up article with details from the earnings call.
Universal Music Group: In another strong quarter, UMG posted a 10.2% revenue gain (in constant currency) to $3.5 billion. EBITDA rose 11.6% (also in constant currency) to $694 million and EBITDA margin ticked up to 22.0% from 21.6%. Recorded music subscription revenue, a closely watched metric, rose 8.6% while other streaming revenue was flat at $394 million. Go to the full article for all the details and check out the follow-up article for more insights.
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Radio companies had mixed results in the third quarter in their efforts to build digital businesses, cut costs and manage a decline in broadcast advertising dollars as consumers shift to newer entertainment platforms.
iHeartMedia’s consolidated revenue of $997 million was down just 1.1%, well within the company’s guidance of a low single-digit decline. Excluding the impact of political advertising in the prior-year period, revenue was up 2.8%. CEO Bob Pittman said during the company’s earnings call on Monday (Nov. 10) that the advertising environment is “pretty good” and iHeartMedia is “not feeling anything” related to the U.S. government shutdown.
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An operating loss of $116 million stemmed from a $209 million impairment charge related to the value of iHeartMedia’s FCC licenses. Excluding the impact of the write-down and other extraordinary items, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), a common measure of profitability from ongoing operations, was flat at $205 million.
The multi-platform division, which includes iHeartMedia’s broadcast and network businesses, had revenue of $591 million, down 4.6% due to lower political advertising and what the company called “uncertain market conditions.” Adjusted EBITDA of $119.2 million marked an 8.3% decrease from the prior-year period, despite lower employee compensation costs.
The digital audio group, which includes podcasts, had revenue of $342 million, up 14%, and adjusted EBITDA of $130.3 million, up 30.3%. Podcast revenue increased by 22% to $140 million.
Based on trends for the top advertisers and advertising agencies, Pittman said he has “confidence” that the multi-platform division will return to revenue growth. “We’re feeling similar momentum to what other ad-supported companies have discussed right now: Spending is holding up, and discussions with advertisers are positive,” he noted on the company’s earnings call. Although iHeartMedia has not felt any impact from the government shutdown, Pittman conceded it “does add a level of uncertainty.”
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iHeartMedia said it remains on track to create $150 million in annual cost savings in 2025. In addition, the company took steps in the third quarter to save an additional $50 million in 2026, which COO/CFO Rich Bressler said will come mainly from the multi-platform division.
Looking ahead, iHeartMedia expects fourth quarter revenue to be down in the low single digits. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be $200 million to $240 million, down from $246 million in the prior-year quarter because of political advertising in the 2024 election year. The multi-platform division is expected to be down in the low single digits. Digital revenue is expected to grow in the high single digits, and podcast revenue specifically is expected to grow in the mid-teens.
Cumulus Media, the country’s third-largest radio broadcaster by revenue, reported that third-quarter revenue fell 11.5% to $180.3 million. CEO Mary Berner cited a “challenging” advertising environment and touted Cumulus’s efforts to cut costs and employ AI to improve efficiency. Broadcast revenue plummeted 17.2% to $115.0 million. Digital revenue fell 2.6% to $39.0 million but would have grown 8.4% without the losses of The Daily Wire and conservative commentator Dan Bongino, who left podcasting to become the deputy director of the FBI. Consolidated adjusted EBITDA fell to $16.7 million from $24.1 million a year earlier.
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Townsquare Media faced “numerous headwinds,” CEO Bill Wilson said in a statement, but the company met its previous guidance on revenue and adjusted EBITDA. Revenue dropped 7.4% to $106.8 million and would have dropped 4.5% if political advertising were excluded. Adjusted EBITDA fell 13.5% to $3.4 million.
iHeartMedia shares fell 6.0% to $4.29 on Tuesday (Nov. 11) following the earnings announcement on Monday afternoon. The stock had jumped 55.9% in the week ended Nov. 7 following a report that the company was in talks with Netflix to distribute its podcast content.
Cumulus Media shares soared 31% to $0.135 the day after the company released earnings on Oct. 30. The stock has since lost all of those gains and more, however, and closed at $0.10 on Tuesday (Nov. 11).
Townsquare Media shares fell 11.3% to $5.42 on Monday following the quarterly earnings report. The stock rose 0.6% to $5.45 on Tuesday.
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Lightning in a Bottle dropped their 2026 lineup early this year, with the event’s organizers presenting a major bill for the fest this May.
Leading the lineup are art electronic legends Empire of the Sun, Dutch phenom Mau P (whose August track “Tesla” is currently at No. 1 on Dance/Mix Show Airplay), hard techno arbiter Sara Landry, bass OGs Zeds Dead, UK D&B legends Chase & Status, R&B queen Tinashe, UK fav Barry Can’t Swim and Brazilian whirlwind Mochakk.
Beyond that, the bill features Of the Trees, Billboard’s September Dance Rookie of the Month Jigitz, Overmono, Daily Bread, Lee Burrdige, Hot Since 92, Nia Archives, Dimension, Alleycvt, Jayda G, and many more. See the complete lineup below, with this lineup poster’s design nodding to the festival’s longstanding Mixtape stage, where DJs play classic cuts on cassette all weekend long.
Additionally, after first collabing with legendary L.A. club night A Club Called Rhonda last year, the party will be back for another takeover at the Crossroads Stage, with the longstanding D&B party Respect DnB, the party Baile World and afrobeat/amapiano/dancehall party FMLY BZNS all also hosting nights at Crossroads. LiB will also, as always, host myriad talks, workshops and yoga sessions over the weekend.
Lightning in a Bottle 2026 will mark the 23rd edition of the independent festival. It happens over Memorial Day weekend, May 20-24, 2026 at Buena Vista Lake near Bakersfield, Calif.
Tickets for for the fest go on sale on Nov. 14 at 11 a.m. PT.
Lightning in a Bottle 2026
Courtesy Lightning in a Bottle
