Outside Lands 2025 | Showcasing the Bay

Outside Lands returned to a shining Golden Gate Park for its 17th year, showcasing the best music, food, and community the Bay Area has to offer. From August 8-10, Outside Lands brought in an estimated 225,000 attendees that enjoyed performances by Tyler the Creator, Doechii, Doja Cat, John Summit, Ludacris, Vampire Weekend, Gracie Abrams, Anderson .Paak, Hozier, and much more. Outside Lands, a quintessential microcosm of the Bay Area, transformed the evergreen sloped polo fields, bringing in one of the best versions of the festival to date. 

With more than 110 different artists on the lineup and multiple stages, festival-goers had their work cut out for them. While overlapping set times are inevitable during a music festival, no one is set to have the same itinerary. Especially given the genre-spanning music performed across the park, there was bound to be a stage where fans can find their niche, expand their music palate to discover new artists, or just flat-out vibe with your tribe.

Three Days of Music

Day One of any music festival is typically the most high-energy for fans, with the excitement of walking into the venue, checking out new stage designs, and exploring the merchandise tent (which sells out fast). My group and I started the day at the Sutro stage by checking out San Diego–based band Almost Monday, whose name I wasn’t familiar with. But two songs into their set they played their hit, “Can’t Slow Down,” a song I enjoy often on 92.9 KjEE Radio. Their sound reminded me of a cross between Empire of the Sun and Milky Chance. After we ventured onto the SOMA stage, an EDM-based stage with a new triangular design to see deejay Notion, who had had the crowd jumping to his mixes of U.K. rap-influenced dance music. Lands End (main stage) was our next stop to see Still Woozy, an alternative psychedelic band led by Bay Area native Sven Gamsky. “This is home,” he said, as he performed and playfully grooved in front of a psychedelic garden stage design. They finished their set with the crowd favorite song, “Goodie Bag.” 

We planted our roots at Lands End stage to see this year’s Grammy winner for Best Rap Album, Doechii. She brought it all to the stage: choreography, storytelling and her sheer performance was headliner-worthy. Performing songs such as, ”Nissan Altima,” “Denial Is a River,” and “Anxiety” without skipping a beat. Doechii danced and rapped the entirety of her songs effortlessly, something that is lacking in live hip-hop performances that usually rely on production design and playback. 

Finally, we finished the night with arguably the most prominent deejay figure in EDM music today, John Summit at the Twin Peaks stage. Opening and closing his set with his dance anthem “Where You Are,” concluding an epic Day One with a grand finale–esque show of bass and lasers. 

Nostalgia was the theme for Saturday’s slate of music. Highlight performances were by Ludacris, Royal Otis, DJ Pee .Wee (Anderson .Paak), Gessafelstein, and headliner Tyler the Creator. Ludacris was the non-negotiable set for me to see, which lived up to my expectations. The Atlanta rap legend went through his full catalog of hits that I loudly rapped along with. Songs like, “Act a Fool,” “Yeah!,” “Area Codes,” “Glamorous,” “My Chick Bad,” “Move B*tch,” and even his feature on Justin Bieber’s song “Baby” reminding fans that the veteran has still got it. 

Royel Otis was a huge surprise with how much upbeat energy they brought to the Twin Peaks stage. Guitarist Royel Maddell shouted in awe of the crowds, “We’ve dreamt of this before; this is insane.” The Australian-based band played their popular songs “Oysters in my Pocket” and “Sofa King.” The crowd sang and danced along to their covers of “Linger” by The Cranberries and “Murder on the Dancefloor” by Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Tyler the Creator closed out the Lands End stage in style as he brought his usual humor and playfulness to life, while celebrating his new album, Don’t Tap the Glass. Performing classic songs like, “EARFQUAKE,” “NEW MAGIC WAND,” and “See You Again” wrapping up a solid Day Two.

The final day of the festival was the most diverse in genres. We began and spent most of the day at Twin Peaks stage, in anticipation of the only dubstep performance of the weekend. A deejay group named Levity brought back the head banging and bass face amongst the crowd, as fans jumped and jammed to the distorted bass. Up next was BigXThaPlug, who held it down for his native state of Texas. BigXThaPlug’s heavy-hitting rap matched his large stature fittingly. Many of his songs sample old-school funk songs and as he provides his twist of southern rap on to the remixed beats. Songs such as “The Largest” and “MmHmm” were some of my favorites. As a finale to what was a memorable weekend of great music was last but not least Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals. .Paak, who I recently reviewed at the Santa Barbara Bowl, was phenomenal once again. His full repertoire was on display for the Bay, performing hits such as “Places to Be,” “Come Down,” and “Bubblin.” .Paak shouted, “I never play around in the Bay, ’cause you guys show me so much love. So I came here for one reason, to give you the best show you’ve ever seen in your f—king life!” Special guest appearances by Cordae and Bay Area legend E-40, who performed the Bay Area anthem, “Tell Me When to Go,” joined .Paak on stage to put a final stamp of hyphy on Outside Lands 2025. 

Lay of the Land

Where Outside Lands shines its brightest is being able to round up such a diverse array of musicians, allowing them to create a curated space for adventure and fun for everyone. Stages such as the Sutro, the sloped hill-side stage where fans can relax on the grass, while still having a perfect stage-view surrounded by the iconic cypress and eucalyptus trees. Or the Dolores Stage, a colorful and joy-inducing space, is a celebration of the queer and trans communities that are part of the genetic makeup of San Francisco. 

However, embracing every facet of the Bay includes the high costs of living. A three-day GA pass to the festival cost $540 after fees, food ranging from $20-$30 per item and even canned water costing up to $6.50. To be fair, Outside Lands is committed to supporting local businesses, which isn’t always as cost friendly to consumers, but helps support S.F.’s local economy. Where the pricing starts to become questionable is in the basic amenities and overall structure of the venue. Bathroom lines and cleanliness were unacceptable at times; even at non-peak hours, it could take up to 15-20 minutes to use a restroom. Overcrowding and crowd control became a main safety concern, while Golden Gate park provides a gorgeous venue, there is a consistent bottlenecking in tight areas where thousands of people are trying to maneuver their way to another stage. More prominent barriers or more staffing would be better in the future. 

Overall, Outside Lands 2025 was my favorite iteration of the festival yet and would encourage anyone to make the trip to the Bay Area to Act a Fool for next year’s festival.