A Philadelphia Concert Season With Something for Everyone

Kendrick Lamar / Photograph by Timothy Norris/Getty Images

From festivals to farewell tours, here are the hottest concerts to see in Philadelphia this season.

• The Top Philadelphia Concerts You Won’t Want to Miss: A calendar of shows to last you all season
• The ’80s, Revisited: Relive a simpler time with these Philadelphia concerts from another era.
• Fare Thee Well: Three artists with concerts in Philadelphia who are soon calling it quits. Or at least claim to be
• A Tale of Two Witches: Two different eras of Wicked represent with Philadelphia concerts this season
• In Defense of Phish: In advance of Phish’s upcoming Philadelphia concert, the band’s number one fan — Casey Boy from WMMR’s Preston & Steve show — tells us why the jammy ensemble doesn’t suck.
• The Main Line’s Tribute Palace: Ardmore Music Hall’s unwavering lineup of tribute bands lets you enjoy the sounds of the greats.

The Top Philadelphia Concerts You Won’t Want to Miss

Jensen McRae

The songwriter and poet has complained that the music industry tried to box her in as an R&B performer because she’s Black. But she’s very much more in the alternative folk realm. Think Tracy Chapman, but with a twist. • May 3rd at World Cafe Live.

Kendrick Lamar

Your Uncle Leo is still complaining about Lamar’s controversial halftime show at the Super Bowl, which co-starred SZA. So maybe leave him at home for this performance, which also features SZA. I’ve got $100 that the encore is “Not Like Us.” • May 5th at Lincoln Financial Field.

Tune-Yards

The incredibly creative singer and bassist easily sell out Union Transfer, so why they’re playing at tiny Johnny Brenda’s is anyone’s guess. In any case, you should do whatever you can to find tickets. • May 7th at Johnny Brenda’s.

MMRBQ

A.k.a., your chance to get selfies with Pierre Robert, Jacky BamBam, and the entire Preston & Steve crew. This year’s WMMR festival is highlighted by Alice in Chains, Three Days Grace, and Mammoth WVH, the solo project from Wolfgang Van Halen, son of the late, great Eddie Van Halen. But if you’re expecting a Van Halen tribute concert, you ain’t gonna get one: Wolfgang refuses to play covers­ of Pop’s material. Of all the big Philadelphia concerts, this is probably the only one that offers live-band karaoke. • May 10th at Freedom Mortgage Pavilion.

Japanese Breakfast / Photograph by Peter Ash Lee

Japanese Breakfast

Not so many years ago, Korean-born Bryn Mawr grad Michelle Zauner was living in Philly and working the coat check at Union Transfer during Philadelphia concerts. These days, she’s indie music royalty, fronting Japanese Breakfast; the author of the best-selling memoir Crying in H Mart; and a fashion icon whose wardrobe Vogue once deemed “epic.” She’s touring in support of her new album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women). • May 15th & 16th at the Met.

Marshall Allen

The leader of the wildly out-there Sun Ra Arkestra turns 101 — yes, 101 — this month and celebrates with a concert and record release. If you’re wondering if the multi-instrumentalist still has it, after a 2024 Brooklyn show the New York Times called him a “mirthful dynamo” and wrote that his “endurance is mind-boggling.” • May 23rd at Solar Myth.

Metallica

If we had to rank the loudest Philadelphia concerts, this would probably be on top. These headbanging lads will play two completely different sets each night, with different acts opening each show. As long as I hear “Master of Puppets,” I’m good. • May 23rd and 25th at Lincoln Financial Field.

Barry Manilow

Sorry, but he’s an absolute guilty pleasure of mine, and I just have to hear “Mandy” and “Weekend in New England” live as often as humanly possible. I’ve attended more than my share of his Philadelphia concerts. I’ve even seen him in Vegas. Twice. • May 24th at the Wells Fargo Center.

Post Malone

Is he a country star? Is he a rapper? Is he a rocker? It’s 2025: He’s all of the above. Get over it. Post Malone brings his Big Ass Stadium Tour to our ballpark, with Jelly Roll and West Virginia singer-songwriter — and fiddler! — Sierra Ferrell in tow. She’s quite good. Look up her NPR Tiny Desk Concert for a taste. • May 24th at Citizens Bank Park.

Lenny Kravitz plays the Roots Picnic on June 1st. / Photograph via Getty Images

Roots Picnic

This year’s iteration of the Questlove-curated fest features a pretty spectacular lineup that includes Lenny Kravitz, D’Angelo, Meek Mill, and, of course, the Roots. Pray for good weather. • May 31st and June 1st at the Mann Center.

Suzanne Vega

You know you can’t wait to sing along to “Luka” and “Tom’s Diner.” Her 10th studio album, Flying With Angels, is due out this month. • June 11th at World Cafe Live.

Bettye Lavette

A true disco-funk-R&B legend, whom the New York Times called “one of the great soul interpreters of her generation.” • June 25th at World Cafe Live.

Paul Simon

I can’t say I’m a huge Paul Simon fan. There’s plenty of his music that I actively dislike. And that stupid video with Chevy Chase for the 1986 song “You Can Call Me Al” still makes me want to scream. And not in a good way. That said, any chance I get to see a major artist perform at our historic concert hall on Broad Street is one I typically take. • June 26th, 28th, and 29th at the Academy of Music.

BABYMETAL

What do you get when you stick heavy metal and J-pop into a test tube and shake it up? You get the women who make up this combo. They were the first Japanese group to ever headline Wembley Stadium. • June 28th at the Mann Center.

Tyler, The Creator / Photograph via Getty Images

Tyler, The Creator

I’ve always been a bit puzzled by that comma in the rapper’s name. At these shows, the former Odd Future frontman, known for wide-ranging sounds that can go from horrorcore to Stevie Wonder-inspired, is joined by Lil Yachty and the notably comma-less hip-hop duo Paris Texas. (Man, I really want to put a comma in there.) • July 5th and 6th at the Wells Fargo Center.

GHOST

You’ve probably never seen a show quite like the one put on by these Swedes. There’s plenty of heavy metal, lots of costumes, and an abundance of over-the-top theatricality. To see if this is your cup of tea, take in their just-released album, Skeletá. (Their first single from it? “Satanized.”) One thing I love about their show in Philly: No smartphones allowed. More acts should do this. • July 19th at the Wells Fargo Center.

GHOST / Photograph by Mikael Eriksson/M Industries

The Weeknd

Hopefully these two shows are better than his unbearable performance at the Grammys in February.­ • July 30th and 31st at Lincoln­ Financial Field.

Katy Perry

All together now: You’re gonna hear me roar! • August 9th at the Wells Fargo Center.

Katy Perry / Photograph via Getty Images

My Chemical Romance

I always enjoy a novel pairing when it comes to concerts. I don’t need to see one pop diva open for another­ or a heavy metal band open for a heavy metal band. You get the idea. Variety is a good thing. So I’m enthused that these New Jersey alt-rockers are toting creepy Alice Cooper­ along for this show. • August 15th at Citizens Bank Park.

Nine Inch Nails

NIN co-masterminds Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross keep themselves pretty busy scoring films, the latest in the pipeline being the new Tron movie due out in October — not that anybody asked for a new Tron movie.­ But once in a while, Reznor and Ross get the band back together­ to bring their edgy industrial sounds to the masses. • August 27th at the Wells Fargo Center.­

Tate McRae

You can watch her recent much-talked-about performance on Saturday­ Night Live and decide for yourself if this is your thing. • September 6th at the Wells Fargo Center.

Tate McRae / Photograph by baeth

Eric Clapton

The guitar god comes out of nowhere with an international tour. • September 13th at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Lumineers

I can’t say I’d jump through hoops to get to this show if not for the fact that hometown heroes Dr. Dog, who supposedly stopped touring, are opening. • September 19th at Citizens Bank Park.

XPoNential Festival

The annual music festival from WXPN is always a bittersweet affair. Sweet because the lineup is always so, well, sweet. But bitter because this fest always marks the end of summer concert season. This time around, I’m excited for Sharon Van Etten, Courtney Barnett, and a WAR reunion. • September 19th through 21st at Wiggins Park.

Philadelphia Concerts That Revisit the ’80s

Relive a simpler time with these acts visiting the area over the summer.

Simple Minds

Photograph via Getty Images

Year of Debut Album: 1979. But the band hated it. So they released another just months later. It flopped. They didn’t achieve commercial success until 1982’s New Gold Dream. Best Known For: “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” a.k.a. that song from The Breakfast Club. Quizzo tidbit: Simple Minds was thrilled to perform a three-song set in Philadelphia for Live Aid, but a satellite problem cut their performance short for the two billion watching live worldwide. With Soft Cell and Modern English, June 14th at the Mann Center.

Toto

Photograph via Getty Images

Year of Debut Album: 1978. It was appropriately titled Toto. Unless you’re a big Toto fan, the only song you would possibly remember is “Hold the Line.” Best Known For: Their 1982 juggernaut “Africa.” Pretty sure this is the only time a song has combined Kilimanjaro, Olympus, and the Serengeti in a nine-word lyrical phrase. Quizzo tidbit: Toto is big in Japan, as the saying goes. But also in Scandinavia. Help us make sense of this. With Christopher Cross and Men at Work, August 1st at Hard Rock Atlantic City.

Billy Idol

Photograph via Getty Images

Year of Debut Album: 1982. The eponymous release featured immediate hit “White Wedding.” Rolling Stone loved his “gritty” and “aggressive” voice in its review of the album, but noted, correctly, that all of the songs sort of sounded the same. Best Known For: That unmistakable sneer and vast leather wardrobe. Quizzo Tidbit: In 2023, the Brit became the only musician to perform atop the Hoover Dam. It’s not entirely clear why he did so. But … cool. With Joan Jett, August 16th at the Mann Center.

Fare Thee Well

Three artists who are calling it quits after their latest tours. Or at least claim to be.

Rod Stewart

Photograph via Getty Images

July 12th @ the Mann Center
Sir Rod is calling this tour “One Last Time,” a play on his 2021 song “One More Time,” which you’ve probably never heard. He’s 80 and still getting onstage and singing his 1978 hit, “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?” — at which all the women in the crowd still go wild. At a concert in Florida in March, he bared his chest and pranced around in a shimmery blazer while giving the occasional pelvic thrust. God bless this guy. Odds of Future Farewell Tour: 25 to 1 against

Wu-Tang Clan

Photograph via Getty Images

July 18th @ the Wells Fargo Center
The Wu-Tang Clan has performed many shows over the years, but due to band infighting and other issues, rarely as a complete unit. But co-founder RZA somehow managed to persuade all nine living members of Wu-Tang to join the tour, with Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s son (the appropriately named Young Dirty Bastard) filling in for his late pop. Hopefully the unpredictable bunch can keep their egos in check and see this thing through to the end. Odds of Future Farewell Tour: 10 to 1 against

Cyndi Lauper

Photograph via Getty Images

July 20th @ the Mann Center
The 1980s icon embarked on the “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour” in October and was set to conclude it in Japan in April (as in, last month). But, fortunately for Philly, she added some more dates. To be clear, Lauper swears she’s not retiring completely. She’s just leaving the exhausting and stressful world of touring but may do the occasional appearance if you want to pay her enough money. Odds of Future Farewell Tour: 50 to 1 against

A Tale of Two Witches

Kristin Chenoweth and Cynthia Erivo / Photograph via Getty Images

Unless you’ve been completely disconnected from humanity for the past year, you’ve probably heard quite a bit of talk about Wicked, the movie version of the Tony-winning Broadway musical. And this concert season brings you the opportunity to see and hear the actors who played two very different Wicked witches in two very different eras of Wicked.

First, it’s Kristin Chenoweth, the original Glinda, at the Kimmel Center on May 3rd. She made the song “Popular” famous in 2003, when Ariana Grande, who starred as Glinda in the 2024 movie version, was an impressionable 10-year-old. Chenoweth has had an extensive career on stage and the small screen (The West Wing and Glee, for examples of the latter). Seeing Chenoweth live is cool in and of itself. But accompanied by the Philadelphia Orchestra? A no-brainer.

If you’ve seen the movie, you know that the best performance of all was given by Cynthia Erivo. (Sorry, Ariana.) The British sensation played Elphaba Thropp, whom you might know better as the Wicked Witch of the West. The question is who will sing Grande’s part of their duet “Defying Gravity” when Erivo visits the Mann Center (also with the orchestra), on June 21st? You’ll just have to go and see.

In Defense of Phish and Their Upcoming Philadelphia Concerts

Photograph by Jeff Fusco

The band’s number one fan — Casey Boy from WMMR’s Preston & Steve show — tells us why the jammy ensemble doesn’t suck.

I first became a Phish fan way back in 1993. I’ve seen them more than 80 times, from Philly to Maine to Miami. And as the die-hard Phish fan that I am, I’ve heard it from so many people over the years about how much the band sucks. What band never plays a song the same way twice? What major band would show up to a sold-out concert and tell the crowd, “We’re about to play hours of new music you’ve never heard before”? The answer is Phish.

This is a band that surprises fans by covering entire albums, whether it’s Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon or the Who’s Quadrophenia. This is a band that did a 13-night run at Madison Square Garden and never repeated a single song. Going to a Phish concert is a little bit like listening to a jukebox, where you might hear a rocking song, then a bluegrass song, then a barbershop quartet song. A lot of people like the Foo Fighters. You know what? I like the Foo Fighters. But the thing about the Foo Fighters is this: Every Foo Fighters song sounds like the Foo Fighters. With Phish, you just never know what you are going to get.

Want to experience it for yourself? Phish plays the Mann Center on July 15th and 16th.

The Main Line’s Tribute Palace

Ardmore Music Hall / Photograph by Initiative/20/20 Visual Media

Ardmore Music Hall’s unwavering lineup of tribute bands lets you enjoy the sounds of the greats.

There was a time when the building now occupied by Ardmore Music Hall housed the 23 East Cabaret, a go-to rock venue for people who wanted to hear hot, new, up-and-coming, original bands. The 23 East, as devotees called it, presented artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dave Matthews Band, and Hootie & the Blowfish before those artists were selling out massive venues all over the world.

These days, a little more than a decade after the Ardmore Music Hall’s debut, it seems to book about as many tribute shows as anything else. This month alone, you can see four completely different tribute concerts honoring the Grateful Dead. What would it sound like if Phish, the Talking Heads, and Pink Floyd got together to jam? Pink Talking Fish does its best to answer the question you’ve probably never asked yourself. There are 40 performers getting together to play 40 Bob Dylan songs on the occasion of his birthday. The late Quincy Jones also gets his own night. And that’s all just this month: As of press time, half of the concerts in May are tributes.

I’m not saying any of this as a criticism of the venue. Tribute bands have been around for ages, but Ardmore Music Hall opened at a time when they were really taking off, and the owners were poised to capitalize on that trend, which they have most certainly done — to their credit. Besides, this is the Main Line. Does anybody out that way really want to hear whatever your kid and his friends have been practicing in the garage?

Published as “Heat Wave” in the May 2025 issue of Philadelphia magazine.