festivals
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The celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Vive Latino festival turned into a big party on Saturday (March 15), with rhythms like rock and cumbia taking center stage through the voices of some of their greatest exponents, including Mexican bands Caifanes, Los Ángeles Azules, and El Gran Silencio.
On its first day of activities, the musical gathering, which returned after a year to its original venue at Estadio GNP Seguros (formerly Foro Sol), brought together 80,000 people, according to promoter Ocesa.
One of the most anticipated and applauded performances was by the legendary group Los Ángeles Azules, who made a triumphant return to the popular music festival 12 years after their memorable debut. Meanwhile, Caifanes added a social touch by addressing themes such as the crisis of femicides in Mexico and migration during their main stage performance.
There were big surprises, like the highly-awaited debut of emerging artist Macario Martínez at Vive Latino. In addition to his solo act at the Carpa Intolerante stage, he was invited to perform alongside the band Little Jesus. Emotional highlights of the marathon of a day included the appearance of Molotov‘s guitarist and vocalist, Tito Fuentes, who joined his bandmates near the end of their set to celebrate the band’s 30th anniversary, after previously announcing he was taking a health-related hiatus.
Emmanuel “Meme” del Real, keyboardist of the popular band Café Tacvba, also delivered one of the most special performances, showcasing new songs from his solo repertoire. Another standout moment came from the German band Scorpions, who fulfilled a promise to their Mexican fans after canceling their performance at the festival last year.
Day one of the festival also saw appearances from Spanish and English-speaking acts, including Nortec: Bostich + Fussible, Él Mató a Un Policía Motorizado, Foster the People, The Guapos, Caloncho and Jesse Baez.
On Sunday (March 16), the festival continues with performances by Zoé, Mon Laferte, Aterciopelados, Sepultura, Keane, Draco Rosa, Los K’comxtles, Eden Muñoz, Kany García, Porter, Rüfüs Du Sol and Cuarteto De Nos, among others. For the second year in a row, and thanks to a partnership with Amazon Music, concerts can be streamed for free through the digital platform.
Below are some of our favorite moments from the first day of the 2025 Vive Latino festival, as it celebrates its first quarter-century.
Caifanes for Women & Immigrants
A$AP Rocky made a spectacular entrance at Rolling Loud California 2025.
Taking a page from Travis Scott’s playbook, the 36-year-old Harlem rapper made a dramatic entrance for his headlining set at the music festival on Saturday (March 15), descending onto the stage from a helicopter that hovered over the massive crowd at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif.
Seated in the black chopper, which was emblazoned with the title of his long-awaited upcoming album, Don’t Be Dumb, Rocky performed an unreleased track, rumored to be called “All Black (Stole Ya Flow).” He first debuted the song at Rolling Loud Miami 2023.
Once lowered onto the stage, the hip-hop star launched into a high-energy set that included hits like “A$AP Forever,” “RIOT (Rowdy Pipe’n)” and “Tailor Swif,” as well as the debut of another unreleased song, the Metro Boomin-produced “Your Honor.” Rocky also invited Skepta on stage for a live duet of 2018’s “Praise the Lord (Da Shine)” before closing out his performance with “Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye 2.”
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With his partner Rihanna cheering him on from the crowd, this marked A$AP’s first live performance since being acquitted of two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in Los Angeles. A fan-captured video from the set featured a brief video montage documenting his trial.
Saturday’s Rolling Loud California also saw appearances from YG, Sexyy Red, Peso Pluma and BossMan Dlow. The fest continues on Sunday (March 16) with performances by Playboi Carti, Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely, Quavo and more.
In February, A$AP shared an update on his upcoming fourth album, Don’t Be Dumb, during a conversation with GQ. An official release date for the album has not yet been announced.
“I’m in the mixing and mastering realm of it,” he told the magazine. “But I think quite frankly, people are tired of hearing about updates about the album. They’re just ready to get this s—, you know what I’m saying? I don’t think anybody wants to hear where I’m at with it, how far is it along and all that. They just want to hear some s— just to see where I’m at, and I promise I got some new s— in store. I’m challenging myself. It’s like anything, I approach it with a different tactic, degree, or finesse.”
Watch A$AP Rocky’s unforgettable set from Rolling Loud California 2025 here.
T-Pain loves him some Wiscansin. The rapper-singer announced on Thursday (March 13) that he’s heading to Milwaukee for his two-day Wiscansin Festival, which is set for June 13 and June 14. The Florida native and some of his musician friends will take over The Rave/Eagles Club on June 14 for his fourth annual Wiscansin Fest. […]
March Madness is just around the corner, and NCAA and TNT Sports Live Events announced on Wednesday (March 12) the star-studded line-up of artists performing at 2025 NCAA March Madness Music Festival in conjunction with the Division I Men’s Final Four. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The […]
Chicago’s ARC Music Festival has announced a sprawling 2025 lineup featuring nearly 100 artists. The fifth edition of the house-focused festival will feature performances by Jamie xx, Amelie Lens, Adam Beyer, Richie Hawtin, John Summit, Luciano, Fisher, Blond:ish, Eric Prydz (who will play under this name and also do sets under his Pryda and Cirez D aliases) […]
After a difficult 2024 in which a number of major festivals closed their doors for good, Coachella sales were down and Burning Man didn’t sell out, WME global head of festivals Josh Kurfirst says, “Protecting the health of the festival business has become central to everything we do.”
“It’s no longer an incoming call business,” says Kurfirst, the son of Gary Kurfirst, former manager of Talking Heads, the Ramones, Blondie, The B-52s, Jane’s Addiction and Garbage. Early on, the job of most festival agents, Kurfirst explains, was to field offers from festival talent buyers for artists on the WME roster, negotiate where the artist’s name would appear on the festival poster and review daily ticket sales drops. But as the market matured and evolved, he instructed his staff to get more aggressive about pitching WME acts to prospective buyers and finding opportunities for them to bookend tours and live shows around festival appearances.
“Everything is strategic,” he says. “It’s not, ‘Let’s just throw 300 bands on this festival because it’s easy.’ We don’t do things easy.”
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Despite the cancellations of such once-popular festival brands as Faster Horses, Sick New World, Something in the Water and Alter Ego, Kurfirst and his team have plenty of success stories to tell. This year, his team helped land Zach Bryan his first headliner date atop the Stagecoach festival, secure newcomer Benson Boone a top slot on the Coachella lineup, book The Killers as headliners for Lollapalooza and secure headliner slots for Luke Combs, Olivia Rodrigo, Hozier and Queens of the Stone Age at Bonnaroo.
2024 was a tough year for festival sales. What happened?
First, it’s important to acknowledge that the festival market has significantly increased in size in the last decade. When I first started, there was a smaller group of giant festivals that had most of the market share. Since then, we’ve seen the emergence of a middle tier, a lower tier, a genre-specific tier and a lifestyle branch of festivals. And those have taken some market share away from the crossover contemporaries — the Coachellas, the Lollapaloozas and the Bonnaroos of the world. There’s really something out there for everyone now as long as you’re willing to travel. Look at Morgan Wallen’s new Sand in My Boots festival on the same site as the old Hangout Festival, which had been a steady market for years. Some years it sold out. Some years, it came close, but it never blew out on the on-sale. All of a sudden, Wallen comes in and launches his own festival on the site and it sells out instantly.
Atop a bowl of all-access festival and tour laminates, Kurfirst displays a copy of photographer Lynn Goldsmith’s Music in the ’80s book, open to a shot of the Talking Heads, whom his father, Gary, managed.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
What did Wallen do differently from Hangout Festival?
Instead of trying to create an event that appealed to as many people as possible, Wallen created an event that overdelivered to his fan base. He rebranded the festival under his own name and booked more than a dozen similar artists that he believes will connect with his fans. [This year’s lineup includes Bailey Zimmerman, Post Malone, Wiz Khalifa and The War on Drugs.] If you’re a fan of Morgan Wallen, then you won’t want to miss out on the Sand in My Boots festival. And, by the way, if you live in the Southeast, it might be your only chance to see him play this year.
How are overall festival sales so far, compared with 2024?
Last year was interesting. It wasn’t just straight down. It was choppy water. This year is still early. Most of the festivals just announced their lineups, and from what I’m hearing, it’s been positive. The overall market feels like a bounce-back year, and a lot of that has to do with the headliners. We’ve had a solid crop emerge — Olivia Rodrigo and Hozier, for instance. To a young artist like Olivia, these festivals mean something. It’s a notch on her belt and a way to do something in her career that she hadn’t done before.
Kurfirst’s mother, Phyllis, created this framed collage that, in addition to ticket stubs from concerts that Gary promoted, depicts (clockwise from top) Phyllis and her pet huskies; Gary and Phyllis at his parents’ house; and at their alma mater, Forest Hills High School.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
How do you judge success at WME?
It’s not based on quantity or how many festival slots WME artists are on. We’re very selective. We’re building careers. And we want to make sure when it’s our clients, they’re in the right cycle in terms of their music cycle. Typically, that means the artist has new music ready for the fans to discover and plans for either touring or other dates that they want to build momentum behind. They’re going to play the right slot, they’re going to get the right billing, they’re going to get the right money. That’s the time to play the festival. If any of those things are off, we’ll just do our own thing — meaning, we’ll work with a promoter, headline our own tour and continue building their hard-ticket business, which is incredibly important for all our artists.
Are festivals still a healthy launching pad for an artist’s career?
They are a good developing mechanism for new artists, but again, it has to be the right moment. I don’t know that it would make sense to just throw a new artist that doesn’t have any music out on a festival [stage] at 12:30 p.m. when the doors open. That’s a wasted booking. It would be better for that artist to be in cycle, have music out, have some press, garner some reviews ahead of time, so people actually have the ability to do their research and [want to] show up in front of their stage.
Pillows commemorating Madison Square Garden shows by artist clients whom Kurfirst represents in addition to overseeing WME’s festival division.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
The festival market has had an uptick in cancellations in recent years. In that environment, how does WME maintain a positive relationship with promoters?
We look at the promoters as our partners. They’re not on the other side of the table; they’re on the same side of the table. We want them to succeed, and we have their backs. In return, they have our backs, too.
What does it mean to have each other’s backs?
With festivals, artists sometimes have to cancel. Sometimes they get sick, they break a leg, the album gets pushed. Sometimes it’s our clients. Sometimes it’s clients from other agencies. What we do in those situations is we don’t bury our heads in the sand. If it’s a Saturday at 3 p.m. or 7 p.m. or 7 a.m., we’re there for our buyers to fill that slot that suddenly becomes open. And because we book things through one point of contact, the buyer only has to contact one person at WME. That’s his partner, his festival agent, and that festival agent then canvasses the entire roster and can come back with real-time avails within hours.
Kurfirst with his four kids, from left: Landon, 17; Ariela, 11; Eden, 11; and Lucas, 21.
Courtesy of Josh Kurfirst
Are you bullish on the long-term prospects of the festival business?
It’s a very Darwinian environment out there and the strong will survive. There are times where we have to have tough conversations with our promoter partners and come to a fair settlement where our clients feel good, but where we don’t put the promoter out of business. Because that doesn’t help anyone. Make no mistake: When we do a deal, our clients are entitled to 100% of the money if a festival cancels due to poor sales. There are some reasons why a promoter can cancel, like a pandemic. But in most cases, if a festival is canceled, it’s due to poor sales or some sort of promoter breach, and our clients are entitled to 100% of the money. It’s our job to come up with a fair settlement where the client feels good and the promoter is able to get back up on their feet.
What’s one of the most important lessons your father taught you?
He taught me that loving what you do is the single most important decision we make as adults. If you don’t, you can’t bring passion to the job every day. He also taught me about not trying to be someone else. Don’t just go with the trend. He equated that in how he chose the artists he wanted to work with, whether it be the Talking Heads, the Ramones, The B-52s, the Eurythmics, Jane’s Addiction and Mountain. These bands weren’t genre-defining — they invented their genres.
This story appears in the March 8, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Billy McFarland’s Fyre Fest 2 is slated to take place on Isla Mujeres in Mexico from May 30 to June 2, and one artist has announced his appearance on the bill.
Former NFL star Antonio “AB” Brown claimed in an interview with TMZ Sports on Thursday (March 6) that he’s been booked for a performance on May 30.
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“Ayo, this is AB and I’ll be performing at Fyre Fest part 2 in Mexico on May 30. Be there or be square,” AB said while rocking an army helmet. “Make sure you put that sh– on.”
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Isla Mujeres is located in the state of Quintana Roo and is about a half-hour ferry ride from Cancun. Various ticket packages are available, ranging from $1,400 to $25,000, and there’s even a $1 million package for eight people that has access to luxury villas, a private marina and a private jet.
AB is the first confirmed artist for Fyre Fest 2. The festival has yet to release a lineup of talent. Festival organizers reportedly told TMZ that they have booked several artists.
Billboard reached out to two of the biggest booking agencies for music festivals in February, and neither heard from reps for Fyre Fest 2.
Antonio Brown played his last game in the NFL on Jan. 2, 2022, when he famously left the field with no shirt on mid-game and never took another snap on the gridiron.
AB turned to rapping and a friendship with Ye (formerly Kanye West), who executive-produced his Paradigm project, which arrived in 2022 with standouts like “Put That Sh– On” and features from DaBaby, Young Thug, French Montana, Fivio Foreign and Keyshia Cole. He performed at Rolling Loud California in 2023.
The original Fyre Fest took place in April 2017 and is remembered as one of the most disastrous festivals in music history.
Convicted fraudster Billy McFarland is getting a second chance and he’s promising this edition won’t be a repeat of the first. McFarland was sentenced to six years in 2018 after admitting to defrauding investors of millions of dollars. He was released to a halfway house in 2022.
HARD Summer is coming back this August with a whopping lineup. Announced today (March 4), the two-day dance fest will be headlined by Colombian star Feid, Australian house force Dom Dolla, Canadian star Kaytranada, hard-driving French producer Gesaffelstein and hard techno titan Sara Landry.
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Additionally, the fest features a load of dance stars including Marlon Hoffstadt, Crankdat, The Blessed Madonna, Loco Dice, James Hype, Deorro, I Hate Models, Gordo, Nico Moreno, Tape B playing b2b with Mersiv, Jamaican legend Sean Paul and rap icon Juvenile. See the complete lineup below.
Produced by Insomniac Events, HARD Summer will take place at Hollywood Park, the 300-acre entertainment complex adjacent to SoFi Stadium. 2025 will mark HARD Summer’s second year at the site. Tickets go on sale March 7.
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The festival’s debut at Hollywood Park last summer resulted in a rash of noise complaints in the area, with the Following the noise complaints, Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. wrote that “city authorities engaged the event promoter and the venue and implemented several critical adjustments to each stage and established enhanced monitoring plans for overall sound and bass levels. Additional sound engineers were strategically positioned in areas of concern…and were promptly dispatched to make necessary adjustments in real time.”
This year, HARD Summer will again put on its “Pre-Game” initiative, for which HARD partners with local establishments to bring them into the festival. In years past, this has meant on-site activations with L.A. institutions including Randy’s Donuts, Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles, Sweet Red Peach, Sunday Gravy and Carnitas El Artista.
Local businesses can apply here to inquire about partnering on this year’s edition of the project.
HARD Summer 2025
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Their fans had eagerly awaited since Tuesday (Feb. 25), when the event had to be canceled due to a massive blackout in Chile, and Morat did not disappoint. In their debut at the Viña del Mar International Song Festival, the Colombian pop-rock band got the “monster” of Quinta Vergara excited with a show full of energy and heart.
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On a luminous stage, the Bogota quartet composed of Simón Vargas, Juan Pablo Isaza, Juan Pablo Villamil and Martín Vargas sounded impeccable as they performed hits like “No Se Va,” “Salir Con Vida,” “Por Si No Te Vuelvo A Ver” and “Amor Con Hielo,” which the audience sang along to from beginning to end, belting out the lyrics with emotion. It wasn’t long before they were awarded the Gaviota de Plata (Silver Seagull) award, and finally, they also took home the Gaviota de Oro (Gold Seagull), the highest honor given by the audience at the event.
“You can’t imagine know how much we dreamed of being here,” one of the members expressed just before receiving the Gaviota de Oro. “Thank you, really. We love you with all our soul.”
Morat’s setlist also included “París,” “Llamada Perdida,” “Besos En Guerra” and, for the big finale, “La Policía.”
“How wonderful Viña, how wonderful!” the band exclaimed before ending their debut performance at the Chilean festival. “You can’t imagine the dream we are fulfilling here. Thank you so much for all the support, for all the love.”
With hits including “No Se Va,” “Besos en Guerra” and “Cuando Nadie Ve,” Morat debuted in 2016 with the album Solo el Amor y Sus Efectos Secundarios, and received a Latin Grammy nomination for best new artist the same year. Morat’s fourth and latest LP, 2022’s Si Ayer Fuera Hoy, gave the band their first entry on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart, peaking at No. 18.
Later on Saturday, Sebastián Yatra returns to Quinta Vergara to close the festival. Yatra, with almost a dozen No. 1s on the Billboard Latin Airplay chart — including “Robarte un Beso” with Carlos Vives, and “Tacones Rojos” and “Un Año” with Reik, to name a few — had previously performed in Viña del Mar in 2019 with a full show, as well as the previous year during Vives’ concert, joining him on “Robarte un Beso” — something he did again on Wednesday during Vives’ performance.
The 64th edition of the Viña del Mar Festival kicked off Sunday (Feb. 23) with a riveting set by Marc Anthony. Since then, artists like Myriam Hernández, Ha*Ash, Carlos Vives, Carín León, Incubus, Duki, Eladio Carrión and Kid Voodoo have performed at the Quinta Vergara. All nights are livestreamed in the United States online at Billboard and Billboard Español.
Bonnaroo is building a brand new stage for its 2025 event.
Announced Tuesday (Feb. 25), the Infinity Stage will feature a collection of dance and electronic acts, including a b2b set from bass masters Of the Trees and Tape B, a DJ set from Big Gigantic, a DJ set from Rebecca Black, heavy hitter Mary Droppinz, indie dance producer Washed Out, Italian duo Parisi and a Friday stage takeover featuring artist’s from John Summit’s Experts Only label.
The Infinity Stage will be an open-air space composed of three domes, which together will form an immersive area being called “the world’s largest 360-degree spatial audio experience.” The stage is being produced in partnership with Polygon Live, which specializes in such immersive audio experiences, and which has previously hosted stages at festivals including Thailand’s Wonderfruit and MDLBEAST in Saudi Arabia.
“We want to keep it an intimate and truly engaging spatial experience for everybody, so we’re going the route of multiple circles moving forward,” Polygon Live’s David Lopez de Arenosa said at the Billboard Touring Summit in November, in terms of how the company’s multi-domed stage setups optimize sound.
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Elsewhere, the Bonnaroo 2025 lineup is heavy on dance acts, with headliners including Justice, Dom Dolla and John Summit, along with Sammy Virji, Green Velvet, RL Grime, Lszee, Barry Can’t Swim and many more. Outside of dance, 2025 headliners include Luke Combs, Tyler, the Creator, Olivia Rodrigo, Glass Animals, Avril Lavigne, Queens of the Stone Age, Hozier and Vampire Weekend.
Bonnaroo 2025 happens in Manchester, Tenn., June 12-15.
See the complete Infinity Stage lineup below.