When: Sept. 5-7
Where: Raleigh, NC
More Info: Here

Some music festivals feel like a celebration of the city they take place in as much as they do the music itself. Such is the case with Hopscotch, an indie-centric fest in Raleigh, North Carolina, that occurs across various venues in the downtown area. From the City Plaza and Moore Square stages to numerous club shows at Lincoln Theatre, Kings, The Pour House, Wicked Witch, Neptunes, and more, you’ll be hopscotching all over the city.

Indie rock fans (and, frankly, music fans in general) will find plenty to love about the fest’s lineup, as well. Simply put, Hopscotch has one of the best festival lineups of the year. Thursday’s roster features Waxahatchee, Snail Mail, and Tim Heidecker; Friday includes Faye Webster, MJ Lenderman, and Feeble Little Horse; and Saturday has St. Vincent, Guided By Voices, and Indigo De Souza. That’s only scratching the surface. You can also catch club shows from artists like Hovvdy, Ty Segall, Boldy James, and many, many more.

When: Sept. 13-20
Where: Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
More Info: Here

Held at City Of Rock in Rio De Janeiro, the biennial Brazilian festival returns to its home base for another round of unforgettable fun. Now with editions taking place across the globe, including fests in Madrid, Lisbon, and Las Vegas, the now-international Rock In Rio comes back to the city that started it all. This year, Rock In Rio will be celebrating its 40th anniversary, so surely it will be one for the books.

For this year’s expansive lineup, attendees can watch a wide variety of performers across seven packed days. Headliners include Travis Scott, Imagine Dragons, Avenged Sevenfold, Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry, and Shawn Mendes. The undercard boasts plenty of big names, too, such as 21 Savage, OneRepublic, Evanescence, Journey, Charlie Puth, Karol G, Cyndi Lauper, Akon, Ne-yo, and more.

When: Sept. 14-15
Where: Asbury Park, NJ
More Info: Here

Sea.Hear.Now, held at North Beach in Asbury Park, is an annual music and art festival with a unique angle that focuses on ocean sustainability. Given that it takes place on the beach, it’s great to see that a festival cares about its environmental impact and takes an active step to mitigate ecological harm. On top of this angle, there’s a surfing competition for attendees to take part in, if they so choose.

Even if you’re not into surfing or swimming, Sea.Hear.Now has some great live music that you can catch. Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper Asbury Park festival without a performance from the Boss himself, so thankfully Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band are slated to headline the second day. Saturday’s headliner is Noah Kahan, and the undercard includes performers like The Gaslight Anthem, 311, The Black Crowes, The Hives, The Revivalists, Action Bronson, Norah Jones, and more.

When: Sept. 19-22
Where: Louisville, KY
More Info: Here

Music festivals are known for going big, and Bourbon & Beyond is one of them. 100 artists are headed to Louisville’s Highland Festival Grounds at the Kentucky Exposition Center, so attendees will have plenty of live music to watch over the course of a long weekend. There’s also tons of amazing food from local vendors and tasty bourbon from craft distilleries. Needless to say, there will be a lot to take part in if you’re headed to Louisville soon.

As far as the music itself goes, Bourbon & Beyond focuses mostly on Americana-adjacent artists, but it also covers a wide variety of other genres, as well. For this year’s headliners, there’s Zach Bryan, Tyler Childers, Dave Matthews Band, and Sting. There are many big names in the undercard, too: The National, The War On Drugs, Matchbox Twenty, Beck, My Morning Jacket, Whiskey Myers, The Beach Boys, Fleet Foxes, Maren Morris, Black Pumas, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Dinosaur Jr., just to name a handful.

When: Sept. 20-22
Where: Chicago, IL
More Info: Here

Riot Fest was set to have a new location. After spending years at its longtime home base in Douglass Park, the punk-heavy festival was going leaving Chicago proper for SeatGeek Stadium in nearby Bridgeview. But, plans changed and the incredible festival will be where it has always been since it first started back in 2005. In fact, it’s one of the biggest music festivals in the United States that has remained independently owned.

With nearly 100 great bands on this year’s roster, it’s clear that Riot Fest is also sticking to its booking ethos. For this year’s headlining artists, they’ve recruited Fall Out Boy, Beck, Pavement, and Slayer. Other noteworthy acts include The Offspring, who will be performing their 1994 album Smash in full, three farewell performances from NOFX, and Mastodon performing Leviathan. Plus, there’s Public Enemy, Sum 41, Spoon, Waxahatchee, Dr. Dog, Something Corporate, and plenty more.

When: Sept. 25-29
Where: Montreal, QC
More Info: Here

Pop Montreal is famous for its eclectic lineup that boasts tons of excellent bands. This year, the fest has booked over 400 artists to perform at more than 50 venues across Montreal’s Mile End area. This not-for-profit festival brings it year in and year out without fail, and that will almost certainly continue for its 2024 iteration. Aside from music, festival attendees can also participate in events revolving around visual art, film, and much more.

For this year’s roster, Pop Montreal will feature performances from Cassandra Jenkins, Claire Rousay, Homeshake, Freak Heat Waves, ML Buch, Luna Li, Naliah Hunter, Still House Plants, Sunset Rubdown, Spencer Krug, Sorry Girls, Sister Ray, and many others. 2024 presents another Pop Montreal that you most definitely will not want to miss out on.

When: Sept. 27-28
Where: Las Vegas, NV
More Info: Here

This year, Life Is Beautiful has something new on offer. The downtown Las Vegas festival will now be hosting what it describes as a Big Beautiful Block Party. Scaling back from the immense production value of previous years, Life Is Beautiful will now offer a relatively smaller fest with a focus on DJs and electronic music. Taking place over the course of two days, music fans can get the party started at 5 p.m. on each day and, if they so choose, watch every single performer on the bill. There are no overlapping sets between its two stages, so you’ll be able to dance your heart out.

On Friday and Saturday, festival goers can catch sets from LCD Soundsystem, Jamie xx, Justice, Peggy Gou, Jungle, Toro Y Moi, James Blake, Thundercat, and Badbadnotgood. In the smaller fonts, there are some exciting artists lurking there, as well. There’s Empress Of, John Talabot, Fifi, Neil Frances, and LP Giobbi. In late September, Life Is Beautiful will be the place to be.

When: Sept. 27-29
Where: Dana Point, CA
More Info: Here

You may know Eddie Vedder as the figurehead of one of grunge’s biggest bands, Pearl Jam. Fresh off the release of Dark Matter, Pearl Jam has been making the rounds and doing a bunch of live shows. That continues at Ohana Festival, the Dana Point fest helmed by none other than Vedder himself. Alongside Pearl Jam, there are more than 35 performances set to take place across three stages.

Held at the idyllic Doheny State Beach, Ohana Festival returns with another full weekend of excellent live music. Featuring two performances from Pearl Jam (one on Friday and one on Sunday), Ohana also features Devo, Sting, Turnpike Troubadours, and Alanis Morissette as headliners. The smaller fonts still include big names like Maren Morris, The Breeders, Jenny Lewis, Idles, Black Pumas, Kim Gordon, Ibibio Sound Machine, and Cat Power, to name a few.

When: Sept. 28-29
Where: Bridgeport, CT
More Info: Here

The Bridgeport, Connecticut festival is back with a brand-new name. Formerly known as Sound On Sound, the now-titled Soundside returns with two days of great live music. It features 20 artists, who will all be performing on one stage, so you won’t have to worry about bleeding sounds or missing out on one of your favorite acts. Connecticut’s biggest music fest will once again be held at the gorgeous Seaside Park, which is right alongside the banks of Long Island Sound.

As far as the music itself is concerned, this year’s two main headliners are festival staples Noah Kahan and Foo Fighters. The second line includes artists like Fleet Foxes, Queens Of The Stone Age, Goo Goo Dolls, Boyz II Men, Teddy Swims, and Norah Jones. Lurking in the smaller fonts are Hurray For The Riff Raff, The Kills, Madi Diaz, Grace Potter, and plenty more.

When: Sept. 28-29
Where: San Francisco, CA
More Info: Here

San Francisco is home to many incredible music festivals, and you can easily count Portola Music Festival among those names. After making its debut in 2022, the newer fest from Goldenvoice, the promoter known for events like Coachella and Stagecoach, has already established itself as a fest to attend. It may be a newer addition to the festival season, but you could mistake it as a tentpole fest given how quickly it has become a big name.

Portola distinguishes itself from Goldenvoice’s other festivals by focusing mostly on electronic music and its various offshoots. For 2024, notable performers include Jamie xx, Four Tet, Gesaffelstein, and Rufus Du Sol. Also slated to perform are Jessie Ware, Jpegmafia, Empress Of, Floating Points, Nia Archives, Tycho, A.G. Cook, Soulwax, and plenty more.

When: Sept. 28-29
Where: Columbia, MD and Queens, NY
More Info: Here

10 years ago, All Things Go was born. In the ensuing decade, it has become one of the leading music festivals to keep on your radar. For its 10-year anniversary, All Things Go is going all out. Taking place across the same two days in late September, the fest will be heading to both the Washington D.C. and New York City metros with two slightly different, but equally impressive, billings. Whether you head to Merriweather Post Pavilion or Forest Hills Stadium, you are guaranteed to have a great time.

For the Columbia, Maryland edition, the headliners are Laufey with the Kennedy Center Orchestra, Bleachers, Janelle Monae, Hozier, Renee Rapp, Conan Gray, and Chappell Roan, who is pretty much a headliner herself. In Queens, festival goers can catch headliners like Renee Rapp, Muna, Chappell Roan, Julien Baker, Janelle Monae, and Ethel Cain. No matter what version of the fest you attend, there’s no denying that it will be a total blast.

When: Sept. 28-29
Where: San Diego, CA
More Info: Here

Located in San Diego at the beautiful Waterfront Park, CRSSD is a must-attend event for electronic music fans of all stripes. That is, if you’re 21 or older, which is understandable to be frank. CRSSD is a 48-hour, nonstop party. Around 15,000 electronic fans will gather in southern California to celebrate house, techno, and EDM. Plus, there’s plenty of delicious craft beer and local food to sample, too.

This year, festival goers can catch live sets from headliners such as Disclosure, Gesaffelstein, Four Tet, BLOND:ISH, Gorgon City, 999999999, HI-LO, Adam Beyer, and Boris Brejcha. Other performances will include sets from Soulwax, Idris Elba (yes, that Idris Elba!), Adam After Hours, Confidence Man, Tokimonsta with Bicep (billed as Chroma for an AV DJ set), Neil Frances, Mason Collective and so many more.

When: Sept. 28-29
Where: Franklin, TN
More Info: Here

For nearly 10 years, thousands of music fans have been making the pilgrimage to Franklin, Tennessee, to attend Pilgrimage. The festival, with a focus on Americana and roots-adjacent music, has since become a staple that attracts people from all over the country. Taking place just 20 minutes from Nashville, the self-described Music City, holding such a festival only feels appropriate.

For this year’s Pilgrimage Festival, they have booked headliners such as Dave Matthews Band, Hozier, Noah Kahan, and Needtobreathe. Aside from the artists in the biggest font, there are some noteworthy names lurking in the undercard, as well. Attendees can also catch sets from Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Better Than Ezra, Lukas Nelson, Coin, The Cadillac Three, Sierra Hull, Grace Bowers & The Hodge Podge, Allison Russell, and plenty of others.