Concerts and music festivals are looking a bit different this year in the wake of Covid-19. While you may not be able to attend them live in-person, you can attend them live online.
There are many perks to this new live music development. While you may not be able to see your favorite musicians physically up-close and personal, you can see them from the comfort of your home for the fraction of the cost – sometimes, even for free.
Long ago were the days of waiting in lines, sweating under the sun, and being cramped at indoor venues. While we may all long for the days of those memories to become opportunities again, online concerts are better than nothing and are new types of memories for your mental coronavirus catalogue.
Here are some of the upcoming music festivals that are going live online in 2020:
Red Rocks Unpaused
The Red Rocks Amphitheater is putting on its own music festival with some of the hottest artists today on September 1st through the 3rd. It’s a 3-day festival that was kicked off with singer/songwriter Phoebe Bridgers and the band Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats. This festival streaming at Red Rocks is entirely free online at Visible, but you can donate to the artists’ causes. The full lineup can be viewed here.
Philly Music Fest
Philly Music Fest is generally one of the most anticipated concert series of the year for New Englanders, so the thought of it being cancelled this year had many worried. But, fear not! It’s going online with headliner Japanese Breakfast and other artists including but not limited to Langhorne Slim, Mt. Joy, and The Districts. It’s being streamed from Ardmore Music Hall on Philly Music Fest, and it’s free of cost with donations being suggested to help festival raise money for musicians and children. The full lineup can be viewed here, and you can watch it online here.
iHeartRadio Music Festival
One of the most highly anticipated festivals of the year is also going live online: iHeartRadio Music Festival. The 10th-annual iteration of the festival will be held on September 18th and 19th with performances by BTS, Coldplay, Kane Brown with special guest Khalid, and more. In addition to seeing fan-favorites take the stage, backstage moments will also be shared for an in-depth and intimate take on the online experience. Viewers can tune in on The CW App and CWTV.com at 9pm ET/6pm PT, free of cost.
Lincoln Calling
Lincoln Calling is back with its annual, non-profit music festival, streaming from the heart of Lincoln, Nebraska, from October 1st to 4th. The festival will feature artists including Oshun, Mykki Blanco, and Black Belt Eagle Scout, and the full list can be viewed here. Tickets are free, and you can register online at Eventbrite. It’s a pay-what-you-can model, and “[a]ny donation helps sustain Lincoln Calling for years to come, and 50% of donations go directly to music venues in downtown Lincoln.”
Larissa Hamblin is a digital writer based in Brooklyn.
