As if many Wisconsinites’ longing for summer wasn’t already overheating, the lineup for Milwaukee’s Summerfest music festival was announced on Wednesday morning.
Like a playlist set on shuffle across multiple stages, Summerfest always offers a familiar cross-section of pop-music styles along with a mix of long-established famous names and newbies. This year’s roster doesn’t defer from the established game plan. Headliners include pop queen Lady Gaga, jam-band favorites the Dave Matthews Band, reunited hip-hop legends Outkast, pop sensation Bruno Mars, country stars Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker and the Zac Brown Band and ’80s metal gods Motley Crue.
This year’s festival boasts 76 performers slated to grace the stage from June 25 through June 29 and July 1 through July 6.
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Among the noteworthy performers are: pop-punk group Fall Out Boy; alt-rockers Paramore; blues guitar ace Gary Clark Jr.; post-hardcore group Rise Against; roots-rock veterans Melissa Etheridge and Bonnie Raitt; a partially reformed New Order; rap mastermind Nas; singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne; classic-rockers Joan Jett & the Blackhearts; and underground-rock duo Tegan and Sara.
Other acts include O.A.R., Cheap Trick, Ben Harper, REO Speedwagon, Kool and the Gang, the Hold Steady, Ziggy Marley, the Wailers and Twin Cities hip-hop artist Atmosphere.
For the full lineup, visit the Summerfest website.
In related news, the organizers of the annual Lollapalooza festival have likewise unveiled who will be performing on its downtown Chicago stages in early August.
Hip-hop legends Eminem and OutKast, alternative-rock bands Kings of Leon and Arctic Monkeys and EDM stars Skrillex and Calvin Harris will be sharing headliner duties during the event’s three nights.
Other performers slated to perform during the all-day concerts include Lorde, the Avett Brothers, Nas, Spoon, Interpol, Chance the Rapper, Glen Hansard, Phosphorescent, among others.
