State Champ Radio Concerts
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Consumer demand for live and out-of-home entertainment remains high, but Generation Z consumers — born between 1996 and 2020 — are particularly motivated to pay extra for convenience, upgraded experiences and sustainable options, according to a new EY survey. Perhaps not surprisingly, Gen Z is less patient than the average consumer. Nearly two-thirds (66%) of Gen Z respondents plan to buy a “fast pass” or priority pass to theme parks in the next year compared to 59% of all consumers, according to the inaugural EY Media & Entertainment (M&E) Pulse Poll, which surveyed 4,000 consumers across the U.S., U.K., Western Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. According to Javi Borges, EY global media and entertainment sector leader, companies that build convenience into their experiences can take advantage of consumers’ comfort with smartphone apps that offer digital ticketing and contactless payment and check-in. “When you look at the Millennials and Gen Z, there’s an expectation of a certain level of tech enablement and frictionless experience,” he says. “And even older generations post-pandemic, that maybe had never ordered Uber Eats until the pandemic, now they’re just much more accepting of the apps and the frictionless experience.” Speaking of Uber Eats, consumers’ desire for faster service is also reflected in a new McKinsey study, which found that delivery’s share of global food spending increased from 9% in 2019 to 21% in 2024, while takeaway’s share was flat and in-person dining fell to 55% from 69%. Though respondents weren’t polled specifically about music, this same trend toward speed and convenience can be traced in terms of modern-day music consumption habits, where streaming accounts for 69% of global music consumption in 2024 vs. 56% in 2019, according to the IFPI. And on the live front, concert promoter Live Nation says it now expects VIP offerings to account for 30% to 35% of its amphitheater business. Overall, McKinsey predicts that consumer tolerance for inconvenience will continue to decline as their desire for speed and service increases. Despite news headlines that consumers are at a financial breaking point, local entertainment (i.e., entertainment that doesn’t require travel) and live entertainment were purchased by 48% and 46% of respondents, respectively, according to EY’s poll. The poll focuses on companies’ pursuit of consumers’ “fun money,” which Borges calls the 10% to 15% of income people set aside for leisure activities. This segment of discretionary spending goes toward everything from music and video streaming services to concerts and vacations. “Globally, but especially in the U.S., we have more options battling for our fun money than ever before,” says Borges. Spending on live music, which offers an increasing menu of VIP options that provide greater convenience than basic offerings, is especially strong. As Billboard noted in May, a Bank of America study found that U.S. consumers spent an average of $150 a month on entertainment — such as live music and theme parks — from May 2024 to April 2025. Over the same period, credit card holders spent double that amount on live event tickets, racking up an average of $300 per month. In the same study, a third of respondents said they plan to attend more events this year than last year. Indeed, the trend in consumer spending — especially for the young, and especially since the COVID-19 pandemic — is toward experiences over material items. That said, people are willing to pay extra to make their experiences more pleasant or special. EY found that about half (49%) of respondents who visited theme parks or went on a cruise paid extra for premium options, while about a third did so for sporting events and casino/resorts. Younger demographics are also willing to spend a premium of 26% or more on sustainable features when it comes to buying entertainment experiences. For example, 12% of all consumers will spend more on carbon offsetting compared to 25% of Gen Z and 15% of Millennials. Willingness to spend extra based on water conservation practices also splits the age groups: 11% of all consumers globally, but 23% of Gen Z and 15% of Millennials. Live music has made strides to satisfy Gen Z’s preference for sustainable consumerism. Festivals are turning to batteries, sometimes powered by biodiesel or solar panels, instead of diesel-powered generators. That should be music to Gen Z ears: EY found that 24% of Gen Z would pay more for entertainment options that use renewable energy sources (versus 11% of all consumers) and 22% of Gen Z would pay a premium for lower energy consumption (versus 10% of all consumers). Looking ahead, Americans are more likely to spend money at a casino in the next year than people in other regions surveyed (66% versus 49% globally), while Asia-Pacific respondents have a greater preference for theme parks (74% versus 65% globally). About half (48%) of respondents expect to spend the same amount of money on live entertainment in the next 12 months as the past 12 months. The percentage of people who expect to spend more and spend less is almost equal at 21% and 20%, respectively.
Beloved jam band Goose hits the stage this weekend, June 14-15, at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead and the String Cheese Incident for All Good Now, the 30th anniversary of Baltimore promoter Tim Walther’s 1995 outing with Gov’t Mule and John Scofield at Wilmers Park, Maryland.
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“Back then it was just me, some bands, a fax machine and a bunch of fliers,” Walthers tells Billboard of that first-year effort. Since then, he’s grown his small promotion company into one of the most influential indie promoters in the mid-Atlantic region with over 2 million tickets sold across 3,000 club shows and 68 festivals, staging events at venues across the region, from the famed 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. to the bustling mountaintops of West Virginia.
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“We’ve always stayed true to our roots while also having our eye on something bigger for fans of jam bands and improvisational music,” Walthers says. This weekend’s festival also includes sets from Lawrence, Molly Tuttle, the Disco Biscuits, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong and more. The festival is divided by two stages, a symphony woods section and a Shakedown Street where fans can shop and socialize.
Walther notes “there was no promoter playbook” when he first started the All Good Music Festival & Campout in 1997 with landowner Arthur Wilmer to launch “a new kind of music festival—one driven by spirit, spontaneity, and shared values. We were just trying to figure it out and make enough to make it to the next festival.”
Over time, the crowds swelled from 940 people to 23,000 fans, with 1,200 people hired annually to work on the event, which has become a rite of passage for jam band fans from around the world. The festival “never lost its soul,” Walther tells Billboard. “There’s no overlapping sets and whenever possible, fireworks.”
To view set times and buy tickets, visit allgoodpresentslivemusic.com.
By the time the world premiere of the documentary Matter of Time and a panel with key figures from it finished, the Tribeca Festival audience gathered in lower Manhattan on Thursday (June 12) was jonesing for the final part of the night’s programming: a solo acoustic performance by Eddie Vedder. Much to their relief, they didn’t have to wait long.
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“That was a quick five-minute changeover,” the Pearl Jam frontman said as he took the stage. “That was very Saturday Night Live – and it’s only Thursday.”
Vedder wasn’t just in Tribeca as a performer, but as an activist and philanthropist. Matter of Time documents the work of the EB Research Partnership, a nonprofit founded by Vedder and his wife, Jill, dedicated to treating the rare genetic disorder Epidermolysis Bullosa, and a pair of Seattle concerts Vedder played during the organization’s Venture Into Cures Summit in October 2023.
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After thanking “Bob” – “He bought my mom dinner once for her birthday, so I feel like I can call him Bob now,” Vedder quipped of Tribeca Festival co-founder Robert De Niro – the singer turned to the audience. “I just can’t thank you enough for taking that journey with us,” he said. “To accept all that information and all that emotion and be supporting and give us a way to ride the surfboard of hope – we are very, very grateful.”
As the screen behind him displayed pictures of EB patients – most of them children – Vedder launched into his first song, a heartfelt cover of Warren Zevon’s “Keep Me In Your Heart.” The selection was emblematic of the six-song set, where a loose, reflective Vedder leaned heavily on covers. “If I f–k it up, you don’t really have to tell anybody,” he joked before the next song, a rendition of Tom Waits’ “Picture In a Frame” that he said he hadn’t planned to play.
After bringing out the singer-songwriter Glen Hansard to handle guitar duties for Hansard’s own “The Song of Good Hope,” Vedder continued on solo with a rousing version of Pearl Jam’s Ten classic “Porch.” He may have flubbed a transition in the song – “I think I just messed that up!” he remarked during it – but the audience gave him a standing ovation anyway.
“That was very generous, thank you,” Vedder said, before referencing Dr. Jean Tang, a Stanford researcher featured in Matter of Time. During Thursday’s panel, she explained that, with EBRP’s help, a new gene therapy treatment for the condition received FDA approval two months ago. “It wasn’t quite as loud as the ovation that science got, and I couldn’t be happier about that,” Vedder happily declared. “I’ll take a backseat to rock star Jean Tang any day.”
Matt Finlin, Kate Holler, Rowan Holler, Jill Vedder, Jean Tang and Michael Hund speak onstage during the World Premiere of Matter of Time at Tribeca Festival at The Indeed Theater at Spring Studios on June 12, 2025 in New York City.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for EB Research Partnership
Moderated by Tribeca’s Casey Baron, Tang appeared on the brief panel with Jill Vedder, Matter of Time director Matt Finlin, EBRP CEO Michael Hund, and a young EB patient, Rowan, and her mother, Kate. “We need the cure, I’ve been waiting eight years!” Rowan good-naturedly told Tang. “But thank you for your science stuff.”
As the documentary and panel detailed, EB research has increased by leaps and bounds since the creation of EBRP in 2010. For the Vedders, the cause is personal: They were spurred into action after meeting a friend’s child who had EB. “There was nothing then,” Jill said during the panel. Today, with three FDA-approved treatments available, “it really feels like this [a cure] can happen in our lifetime. It really does feel close, and I’m really proud of our families for opening themselves up. We asked a lot of you to be in this film. Thank you for trusting us.”
While Matter of Time weaves in several Vedder performances from his two concerts at Seattle’s Benaroya Hall – Pearl Jam classics like “Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town” and “Better Man” and deep cuts like 2020’s “River Cross” shine – the film is primarily about the lives of EB patients and their families, and the researchers who are working toward a cure. Many of them attended the 2023 shows; the most powerful musical moment in the documentary isn’t any Pearl Jam song, but rather “Say Hi,” which Vedder wrote for the young patient Eli – “My friend, my teacher, my hero,” as Vedder describes him to the Seattle concert audience – who is featured heavily in the documentary and attended Thursday night’s premiere.
In Matter of Time, Jill says EBRP’s research isn’t just critical to curing EB – a devastating disease that one parent in the film says makes patients’ skin “slide off like skin on a ripe peach” – but to providing a model for private funding to support research of rare conditions at a time when public funding is often insufficient. Another parent in the film sums up the extent to which the Vedders’ activism has impacted the EB community: “They changed dread into hope.”
So, naturally, Tang received as impassioned an ovation when she spoke on Thursday as Vedder did – something that clearly buoyed him as he wrapped his set, with covers of Wayne Cochran’s “Last Kiss,” which Pearl Jam has played regularly for nearly 30 years, and Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down,” which also features prominently in the documentary. When the crowd stood one final time to applaud, it wasn’t just for Vedder’s energetic performance, but for the efforts and perseverance on display throughout the evening. “Much love,” Vedder said, as he stood to exit. “Thank you.”
After having a difficult time on stage at Gov Ball, Hozier has made the decision to postpone two of his upcoming shows as he recovers from a virus. The singer-songwriter announced Monday (June 9) that he would be rescheduling his shows in Camden, N.J., and Ridgedale, Mo., writing on X that he is unable to […]
There’s some new kids in town on Good Morning America‘s 2025 summer concert series lineup, with New Kids on the Block, Laufey and more acts locked in to perform on the program over the next few months.
As shared exclusively with Billboard, the show’s annual string of mid-year live performances will kick off June 12, with the “Step by Step” boy band delivering what will be the last concert inside GMA‘s Times Square studio. After that, “Whole Lotta Money” rapper BIA and “No Limit” artist G-Eazy will take the stage July 18 at an outdoor venue in Indianapolis ahead of tipoff at the WNBA All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, and Colombian singer Manuel Turizo becomes the first artist to perform at GMA‘s new studio downtown on Aug. 1.
The next two weeks after that will see punk-rock band Good Charlotte and the Icelandic “From the Start” singer performing at the new studio on Aug. 8 and 15, respectively. Fresh off of a memorable performance at the 2025 American Music Awards, Gloria Estefan will take the stage on Aug. 22, followed by Dierks Bentley on Aug. 27, and Teyana Taylor on Aug. 29.
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“We’re thrilled to host this year’s Summer Concert Series in our brand-new, state-of-the-art studio,” said Simone Swink, senior executive producer of Good Morning America. “It’s an exciting chapter for us, and we can’t wait to welcome incredible artists and our viewers into our home, right here in the heart of downtown Manhattan.”
All of the performances listed will broadcast live during GMA, which airs from 7 to 9 a.m. ET on ABC. This year’s programming follows a 2024 lineup that featured Green Day, Carrie Underwood, Nicky Jam, Kane Brown, G-Eazy, Sofi Tukker, Megan Moroney and Old Dominion. Before that, BTS’ Jung Kook, Carly Rae Jepson, Fat Joe, Busta Rhymes, Remy Ma, Tim McGraw and more performed for the morning show in 2025.
See the full 2025 GMA summer concert schedule below.
June 12 – New Kids on the Block
July 18 – BIA & G-Eazy
Aug. 1 – Manuel Turizo
Aug. 8 – Good Charlotte
Aug. 15 – Laufey
Aug. 22 – Gloria Estefan
Aug. 27 – Dierks Bentley
Aug. 29 – Teyana Taylor
The “Powerpuff Girls of Pop” descended on Barcelona, Spain this past weekend (June 5-7).
The Queens, New York-set music festival, founded in 2011, took place in Flushing Meadows Corona Park for the third straight year.
As rain poured down outside, within downtown Nashville’s Category 10 multi-level bar it was warm and cozy — and ultimately packed to the rafters — on day two of Billboard Country Live. Billed as On the Rise, Friday’s (June 6) lineup featured seven hot newcomers who, based on their infectious sets, all have promising futures.
Day two followed Thursday’s (June 5) Billboard Country Live Presented by Bud Light, which highlighted six acts, including Mitchell Tenpenny, Reyna Roberts, Alexandra Kay, Drew Baldridge, Max McNown and Ashley Cooke.
CMT host Carissa Culiner emceed both evenings, keeping things lively between sets, with assistance from DJ Grant Fisher.
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Annie Bosko performs during Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenne.
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Annie Bosko
Bosko, whose new Stone Country Records album arrives in October, was the perfect opener to kick off the afternoon with her warm, welcoming presence and denim shorts and vest.
The California native opened with the spirited “California Cowgirl,” explaining “because I think no matter where you’re from, you’ve got a cowgirl inside,” before launching into her inspirational current single, “God Winks.” “I’ve hit low points in my life when I wanted to give up and I got a sign from God to keep going,” Bosko said, as fans held up their lighted cell phones, waving their arms in the air. She closed her short set with “(Country Girls) Who Runs the World,” an empowering twangy successor to Beyoncé’s “Run the World (Girls)” that saw her accompanying herself on harmonica.
Harper Grace performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Harper Grace
Sporting a T-shirt that read, “Country music makes you live longer,” the Curb Records artist opened with a sassy, thumping version of “Mr. Mystery” and followed up with the fiddle-laden “Take It Like a Truck,” which would fit right in on a Lainey Wilson album. Grace then went old school with a gorgeous version of the classic heartbreaker “Tennessee Waltz,” first made famous by Patti Page in 1950, before closing out with “IDK,” her current duet with Franklin Jonas, who, dressed in a dapper suit, joined her to the audience’s delight. The two roamed the stage as they sang the searching ballad about trying to find a love that has previously eluded them.
Graham Barham performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Graham Barham
Barham, backed with a full band, kicked the energy up with his blend of country, rock and trap beats on songs like the intoxicating “MIA” and the driving “Camo.” The Sony artist showed off his sense of humor as he introduced “Whiskey,” admonishing the audience to “please remember everything you see on screen isn’t necessarily true. With that being said, this is about me getting hammered.” He followed with a faithful version of Brooks & Dunn’s “Red Dirt Road,” before finishing strong with his boisterous hit, “Oil Money,” as accomplices shot fake money into the audience.
Cooper Alan performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Cooper Alan
Alan brought the party with him in a ridiculously high-energy, fun set, which started with the loping “To the Bar,” adding he used to play in the location before it became Combs’ Category 10. His cover of choice was a galloping version of Avicii/Aloe Blacc’s “Wake Me Up,” which he admitted he goofed up, but made up for it by inviting the audience to jump along with him in a unifying moment. He then launched into “the stupidest thing we’ve ever done,” his TikTok viral novelty hit, “Cold 45,” which was inspired by Afroman’s “Because I Got High.”
Alan and the audience caught their collective breaths when he turned serious, slowing it down and strapping on a guitar to play the sweet ballad “Take Forever (Hally’s Song),” which he wrote about his wife, whom he married in September 2023. But he finished by raising the roof again with “Plead the Fifth,” a hilarious ditty sung to the tune of “Auld Lang Syne,” with rapid-fire lyrics, from which he segued, appropriately enough, into John Michael Montgomery’s “Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)” and Eminem’s “Without Me.” Alan wasn’t on stage for a long time, but he was definitely there for a good time.
Timmy McKeever performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Timmy McKeever
There was cause for celebration for Big Loud artist Timmy McKeever, who had moved to Nashville exactly a year ago and showed why he’d already made great strides in that time. In a striking acoustic set with just him and his guitar, the 18-year-old deliberately slowed down the pace and showed off his sweet voice and fine writing skills with such tunes as the earnest, romantic “I’ve Known Better,” his first song to go viral on TikTok (“for the first two lines,” he joked) and the vulnerable “Bulletproof” (an original, not a cover of the recent Nate Smith hit). He then delivered a tasty cover of Megan Moroney’s “Tennessee Orange” — dubbed “Tennessee Orange (Breakup Version)” — that had not only a gender flip, but a twist, where he’s a Georgia boy in love with a girl who is now wearing Tennessee orange for her new beau, before going into a softer, less aggressive version of Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White & Blue.”
He finished with three originals that showed off his promise as a budding talent, the yearning, infectious “Cravin’ You,” the upcoming single “Hold You to It,” and “Lightning Speed,” a song about losing yourself to the music industry.
Jake Worthington performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Jake Worthington
Armed with just an acoustic guitar, the 2014 The Voice contestant and Big Loud artist conjured up the ghosts of country legends like George Jones and Waylon Jennings with his twangy, authentic traditionalism and big voice.
Even breaking a guitar string early on (which he eventually was able to replace) didn’t slow down Worthington on songs like the irrepressible, upbeat “I’m the One” (the recorded version of which features Marty Stuart) and the aching “Hello S—ty Day,” which would have felt just right performed by Jones.
His 30-minute set was filled with such chestnuts, including the up-tempo, yet downtrodden “It Ain’t the Whiskey” and “Not Like I Used To,” before the Texan played “Ain’t Got You a Hold,” a western swing twirler that would have done George Strait proud. His cover of Merle Haggard’s “Half a Man” fit perfectly in his wheelhouse and was delivered with just the right amount of pathos.
Tayler Holder performs at Billboard Country Live On the Rise at Category 10 on June 6, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.
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Tayler Holder
From the time he stepped on stage, Holder had the audience eating out of his hand. With more than five million Instagram followers, it felt like all the influencer-turned-country- singer’s fans were crammed into Category 10.
Holder prowled the stage as he launched in the hypnotic “Neon,” immediately hand-slapping with the front row with a bad-boy appeal that connected with the audience.
His set showed off his ease tackling various tempos and styles, including “Time in This Truck,” which conjured up a windows-down, wind-in-your-hair feel, as well as the slowed down breakup song “Someone You Knew,” followed by another breakup song he wrote about a four-year relationship that went south, “California Tennessee.” (Happy ending: There’s a new girlfriend in the picture.)
Holder, who moved to Nashville three years ago, and his band did a blazing mini-set of covers that opened and closed with a few bars of “Sweet Home Alabama” and a raucous “Freebird,” with a sweet version of One Direction’s “What Makes You Beautiful,” Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” and Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” (delivered by Holder’s gruff-voiced guitarist) in between.
Holder than ended his set — and day two of Billboard Country Live — with a new song that has already garnered more than a million stream in a few days, the mid-tempo, propulsive “Ain’t You Leaving,” and “Dyin’ Flame,” which has more than 12 million streams. Holder penned the song with Barham. “We sent it to Morgan [Wallen] and [he] politely sent it right back to me,” Holder said. “I’m glad he did.”
Lil Wayne affirmed living legend status on Friday (June 6) night when he took New York’s Madison Square Garden stage for the first time as a solo headlining act. The show doubled as a victory lap for Wayne, who dropped Tha Carter VI hours earlier, and kicked off his Tha Carter VI Tour in grand […]
The U.K.’s summer of live music kicked off in earnest this week with a number of huge tour debuts throughout major cities, particularly in London. Over at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday (June 5), Beyoncé brought her Cowboy Carter tour to these shores for the first time, and a day later, Robbie Williams was […]
