Yes, music festivals are about music—but these days, they’re just as much about the experience. Whether you’re chasing a bucket-list lineup, riverfront vibes or an escape from your monotonous vacay routine, these festivals deliver more than a few good sets. From famous fests that garner thousands to niche folk soirees, we present five worth cashing in PTO for.
Courtesy of Summerfest
Summerfest, June + July 2027 Nine days of music spread across three weekends, the Milwaukee music mainstay serves peak flexibility for festival goers vying to lay eyes and ears on its 600+ artists without the scheduling stress. And when it comes to booking talent, Summerfest sticks to the charts when snagging its lineup with Don Toliver, Carin León, Alex Warren and Megan Moroney all showing out this year.
Iron Blossom, Sept 19–20 The Richmond fete has blossomed from stomp and holler to full indie-sleaze this year with LCD Soundsystem, Jack White and Geese leading the charge. Despite the stacked lineup, it’s surprisingly low-maintenance. Read: Two days, two stages and just a ~2.5 hour drive from Raleigh.
Courtesy of Shaky Knees
Shaky Knees, Sept. 18–Sept. 20 Rock connoisseurs flock to Atlanta annually to mosh, sway and headbang to world-class acts and rising rockstars—from The Strokes and Wu-Tang Clan to Hot Mulligan and Geese—backdropped by diverse crowds, high energy and high production christening the perfect long-weekend music escape.
High Water Festival, April 2027 Although the laid-back North Charleston fest leans on the more folky side of your Spotify (think Wilco and Hozier), they always rope in a few icons from years past (s/o Sheryl Crow), plus odd yet pivotal sets like The Flaming Lips—all serenading the riverfront as breezes roll in and boats drift by.
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, April 22–May 2, 2027 Less of a fest and more of an institution, NOLA’s Jazz Fest cuts across genres, hitting every quintessential American musical style via household names like Neil Young, Lorde, T-Pain and Red Hot Chili Peppers alongside jazz’s greats. And like anything in the Big Easy, food never takes a backseat.
Like Hopscotch’s less edgy, flowy-skirted and flowery sister, Iron Blossom Music Festival continues to shine a spotlight on local indie and folk bands while always tapping a few bigtime acts to end the night—and it reigns as a must-attend for any indie or folk fans in the Southeast.
At just three years old, this RM pick for fests worth traveling for has already blossomed into a one-of-a-kind event, avoiding the long lines, drama and price point of a bigger op while still hosting big names worth drama—NTM it’s just a 2.5-hour drive from the Cap City. Here are some festival highlights to browse while you pen your wishlist for next year’s lineup.
Rain, Rain, Here to Stay Guests were evacuated not once, but twice from the fest on Saturday, with Medium Build sneaking in a set between the two delays. But true to the festival’s happy-go-lucky nature, guests were unfazed and danced in the rain, some barefoot. Even after both evacuations, the energy didn’t end, it just moved—breweries and bars surrounding Midtown Green were buzzing with damp and smiling festival goers.
Indie Sleaze Is So Back Vampire Weekend showed out to headline Saturday night with a greatest hits setlist, oozing the sleazy aesthetics of their heyday ~15 years ago. The undeniable charm of Ezra Koenig plus the nostalgia of “A-Punk” live? Unmatched.
Vampire Weekend
…And Indie Folk Never Left Folk had a field day with the rest of the lineup. From The Lumineers to Boone-based Rainbow Kitten Surprise and Chapel Hill-based Watchhouse, it was an indie fanatic’s dream. Athens-based Futurebirds lead the fest towards alt-country horizons while Improvement Movement slung dad rock with a touch of soul. In short, a wide range of boxes were checked when it came to genre. And the sole lineup lowlight? Alt trio Khruangbin’s cancellation. Maybe next year…
A Hop, Skip and a Jump The aptly-named Iron and Blossom stages were in perfect proximity to each other—if you camped out between the side-by-side stages, you could catch every set. And even so, fest goers hopped between the stages, so sets were never overly congested. Sticking with the drama-free nature, you could wrangle a spot close to the barricade at both stages, so long as you rolled up by 2 or 3pm.
Futurebirds
Hometown Heroes Leaning into local, Richmond and Virginia artists reigned. Richmond-based Holy Roller lit up the stage with grooves and a Western aesthetic. And hailing from Shenandoah Valley just north, folk trio Palmyra garnered a huge crowd at the smaller stage—one that didn’t shy away from singing along. In true Iron Blossom fashion, the group’s Mānoa Bell tapped barefoot along to the beat as he strummed the double bass. Overall, the songs of the Southeast shined.
The best of Raleigh’s 15th annual Hopscotch Music Fest
Another Hopscotch is in the books. It’s been 15 years since the music fest staked its claim as one of the most far-ranging fests in the Southeast, and it continues to hold its ground as a must-see for any indie music fan—local to Raleigh or not.
All too often festivals evolve into a mess of airport-level security, mountains of litter and sunbaked Porta Potties. But Hopscotch—after a decade and a half—has stayed humble, avoiding the drama of a large fest while still sporting a rival lineup. It consistently boasts the perfect combination of legacy sets (think Built to Spill, Superchunk and Godspeed You! Black Emperor) and fresher acts destined to be the next big thing (see: Geese, Geordie Greep and Florry). And it’s all right in our backyard.
The festival is built to be a choose-your-own-adventure with staggered acts at the main stages and club shows, but it’s not easy to see it all. Here are our fave moments you may have missed.
Earl Sweatshirt Did Not Care Earl Sweatshirt had his priorities in order: He strutted on stage, performed some of his recent releases live for the first time, then brought out the happy-go-lucky Charlotte rapper MAVI. And his background visuals reflected this nonchalant mood—a dog with sunglasses on a surfboard was the sole image of the set. “This is my mood board,” he said of the image. “I wanna feel like that.”
Fust or Bust What’s Hopscotch without a local folk mainstay? Durham-based Fust took a well-deserved main slot on the City Plaza stage Friday and didn’t disappoint with a laid-back set layered with easy-on-the-ears violin. NTM the slow set was a subtle start to a day full of loud alt tunes.
North Carolina! Underwater! Between 3D Country and Cameron Winter’s solo work, NYC-based Geese has built a big fan base, and the crowd was buzzing at their City Plaza set on Friday. New singles “Taxes” and “Trinidad” riled the crowd up even more, and unheard tastes of their new album (“Au Pays du Cocaine” was otherworldly) left unmatched anticipation for the upcoming release—and hopefully a return to Raleigh soon.
MMJ Are Gods Live My Morning Jacket has always held a top spot as one of the greatest live rock bands, and on Friday night they proved they are sound in that sentiment. City Plaza’s production upped the ante for the group—the colorful strobe lights were the finishing touch to their jam sesh.
City Plaza Artists Loved Shish Kabob Forget the Red Hat shimmerwall—artists loved City Plaza’s Shish Kabob sign. The simple name was peak entertainment: Earl Sweatshirt thanked (?) the restaurant for being there, and Geese’s Cameron Winter swore “lightning would strike him down” if the whole crowd didn’t receive Shish Kabob gift cards. What’s a festival without a running bit?
Crumb, Caught in the Rain Crumb’s music is destined for the dark, and the rain that crashed their Saturday night set at Moore Square added a grounding element to their groggy but calm dreamscape. Dry feet—and equipment—may have made for an easier set, but there was something liberating about live psych-rock in the rain, and the crowd wasn’t mad about getting a little wet.
Club Shows Are Unmatched Not only is all of Downtown involved—from churches to restaurants—but the music practically never ends, with club sets starting around noon and playing until the early hours of morning. These shows boasted an array of NC artists and beyond—some coming from as far as Cali—and ranged from mosh-worthy to cry-worthy, in the best way (hemlock at Pour House was very much the latter). Hopping club shows was easily worth the late nights.
