Raise your hand if you're ready for summer festival season and the outdoor music that comes with it.
We thought so.
There's no better time to catch a touring act — sometimes for free — than the next few months. Here's a rundown of some of the national acts who will headline fests and other events in Green Bay, the Fox Valley and beyond.
Celebrate De Pere
When/where: May 25-27 at Voyageur Park, De Pere
Who’s playing: Sing along to “Purple Rain,” "Let's Go Crazy" and “Little Red Corvette,” as Gabriel Sanchez leads The Prince Experience 8:30 to 11:15 p.m. May 25 on the Main Stage. If you’re headed to the park for the fireworks at 9:30 p.m. May 26, Too Hype Crew performs 8 p.m. to close. The Riverfront Stage will feature The Cougars May 25 and Pat McCurdy May 26 as headliners.
Tickets: Gate admission is $5 before 6 p.m. and $10 after. Advance tickets of $5 (or a pack of five for $20) are on sale at Community First Credit Union locations in De Pere, Bellevue and Howard. Children 6 and younger and veterans with proof of service are free.
More info: Full schedule of band at celebratedepere.com .
Summer Fun Days Showcase
When/where: 8:30 p.m. June 1 in Titletown District, Ashwaubenon
Who's playing: Pop singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha, who just played the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California last month, brings hit collabs like “I’m Good (Blue)” with David Guetta and “Meant to Be” with Florida Georgia Line to the stage on the west side of Lambeau Field for Titletown's annual kickoff to summer . Live music earlier in the day in Titletown is TBA.
Tickets: Free
More info: No carry-ins or lawn chairs. titletown.com
Freedom Country Fest
When/where: June 7 at St. Nicholas Catholic Church grounds, Freedom
Who's playing: LoCash, the duo of Preston Brust and Chris Lucas, turn the night into “One Big Country” song when they headline at 10 p.m. with hits like “I Know Somebody” and “I Love This Life.” The event that bills itself as “Wisconsin’s Best Small Town Festival” also has BlackHawk (8 p.m.), who sold out Green Bay’s Meyer Theatre in March, and Brady Lee (6 p.m.).
Tickets: $40 general admission, $60 reserved and VIP standing pit in advance at ticketstaronline.com , 800-895-0071 and Resch Center box office. Prices increase to $55 and $70 at the gate.
More info: Parking opens at 4 p.m. and gates at 5 p.m. Plan to arrive early to avoid line backups for parking and admission right before the bands play. freedomcountryfest.com
Metro Jam
When/where: June 14-15 at Washington Park, Manitowoc
Who’s playing: Metro Jam seldom disappoints when it comes to sliding an act nobody saw coming onto the summer music calendar. Atlanta rock band Drivin N Cryin, fronted by Milwaukee native Kevn Kinney, are the big draw at 8:30 p.m. June 15 for the 45th year of the free two-day music fest. Get there by 7 p.m. to catch Los Angeles indie rockers The Pretty Flowers’ opening set.
Tickets: Free
More info: The Exotics headline at 8 p.m. June 14 for a warmup to the main event on June 15, which features seven bands beginning at noon. metrojam.org
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Kewaunee County Fair
When/where: July 11-14 in Luxemburg
Who’s playing: The Kentucky Headhunters, the long-haired country-rock outfit that scored hits in the late ’80s and early ’90s with “Dumas Walker” and “The Ballad of Davy Crockett,” takes the Van’s Lumber Stage at 9 p.m. July 13.
Tickets: The 2024 fair pricing is TBA.
More info: kewauneecountyfair.com
Lifest
When/where: July 11-14 in Oshkosh
Who's playing: The annual Christian music festival's "party with a purpose" is led by headliners We the Kingdom, July 11; Zach Williams, July 12; and For King & Country, July 13.
Tickets: They start at $82 for ages 16 and older and at $41 for ages 8-15 at lifest.com/oshkosh/tickets . Prices increase as the event dates draw closer. Free parking at Winnebago County Park.
More info: lifest.com
Greenville Lions Catfish Concert
When/where: 6 p.m. July 13 at Greenville Lions Park, Greenville
Who’s playing: If you missed Stone Temple Pilots’ free concert outside Lambeau Field last fall for the Green Bay Packers’ Kickoff Weekend concert, here’s your chance to hear frontman Jeff Gut & Co. rip into “Plush” and “Vasoline.” The Lions, who went country last year with Jon Pardi, get back to rocking with a bill that also includes Skillet and Verona Grove.
Tickets: General admission tickets are $50 in advance at Festival Foods locations and Wolf River Bank in Hortonville and Greenville. They’ll be $60 day of, if still available.
More info: Parking lots open at 3 p.m. and gates at 5 p.m. greenvillelions.org/concert
Paperfest
When/where: July 18-21 at Sunset Park, Kimberly
Who’s playing: The 36th annual free festival has yet to reveal its headliner for July 19, but country group Diamond Rio (“Meet in the Middle”) at 8:30 p.m. July 18 and classic rockers Foghat (“Slow Ride”) at 9:30 p.m. July 20 are both locked in. They’re the national names in a lineup that includes more than 30 music acts on three stages over four days.
Tickets: Free admission and free parking
More info: paperfest.com
XRoads41
When/where: Aug. 8-10 at Oshkosh Festivals Park, Oshkosh
Who’s playing: The former Country USA and Rock USA grounds get new life with a first-time genre-mixing music fest that’s being billed as an “elevated festival experience.” Country groups Old Dominion and Brooks & Dunn headline XRoads41 (pronounced “Crossroads Forty-One”) Aug. 8 and 9, respectively, but then its rock band Journey to close things out, almost certainly with “Don’t Stop Believin’,” on Aug. 10. In between, attendees get a mostly country lineup, including Tanya Tucker, Niko Moon, Turnpike Troubadours, Jon Pardi and others, but also ... Jamaican reggae rapper Shaggy.
Tickets: Three-day general admission tickets start at $149 for standing or bring your own chair for seating in the lawn section. Single-day tickets are $89 Aug. 8 and $99 Aug. 9 or 10. Camping and VIP ticket packages are also available, including a VIP Platinum Club Level package for $3,500 that comes with one chef-prepared dinner per day, unlimited select drinks and private luxury bathrooms.
More info: It’s a cashless event with digital wristbands and “carefully curated audio-visual spectacles.” xroads41.com
Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com . Follow her on X @KendraMeinert .
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: From 'Let's Go Crazy' to 'Slow Ride,' here are the national acts headlining summer fests in Green Bay and Fox Valley
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