Music festival season is coming back and many big-name musicians will be performing at festivals and venues around Virginia during the month of May. From major country acts to the biggest names in rock and pop, catch your favorite artists and discover new ones all over the Commonwealth.
NOTE: This is not a complete list of shows and certain schedules may change. Please check with the individual venues for the most up to date details.
VIRGINIA MUSIC FESTIVALS
Throughout May, the Virginia Arts Festival will be bringing hundreds of world-class performing arts in venues throughout Hampton Roads. Major performances include Josh Ritter with the Royal City Band (May 7), Sierra Hull (May 18), Chris Thile (May 19-21), Smokey Robinson (May 21), and many more.
Richmond’s outdoor sports and music festival Dominion Riverrock will brings thousands to the riverside Brown’s Island on May 19-21 with live music performances from The National Reserve, Kitchen Dwellers, Willie DE, Flight Club, Pharaoh Sistare, Erin and the Wildfire, Sierra Hull, Neal Francis, Justin Golden, Cosmic Collective, and 49 Winchester.
Dr. Ralph Stanley’s Hills of Home Music Festival is located in the beautiful mountains of Southwest Virginia at Dr. Ralph Stanley’s “home place” in McClure. The three day festival, taking place May 24-27, is a great opportunity to see traditional bluegrass bands.
The Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival will feature nearly 50 bands just outside of Martinsville May 25-28. The lineup includes Greensky Bluegrass, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, The Marshall Tucker Band, Neal Francis, Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, and many more.
The Patriotic Festival celebrates the military at the Scope Arena in Norfolk May 26-28 and features country music performances from Walker Hayes, Sam Hunt, and Cody Johnson.
RICHMOND CONCERTS
photo credit: Joey Wharton @joey_wharton
Richmond’s summer concert series, Friday Cheers, brings some of the nation’s hottest touring acts, along with some regional favorites to Brown’s Island every Friday night in May.
- May 5 - Snail Mail with Water From Your Eyes and Dazy
- May 13 - Sierra Ferrell with Chris Leggett & The Copper Line
- May 27 - RVA Music Night with Butcher Brown, Cellar Dwellers, Cassidy Snider & the Wranglers
At The National
Photo Credit: Jonathan Piques, @jpinspace
- May 3 – Houndmouth
- May 6 – August Burns Red
- May 12 – Blues Traveler
- May 13 – City and Colour
- May 18 – Chase Rice
- May 26 - Grandson + K.Flay
At the Altria Theater
- May 6 – Richmond Symphony Pops - Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in Concert
At the Dominion Energy Center
- May 13 – Richmond Symphony Pops - N'Kenge: Legends
- May 30 – Boz Scaggs
At Virginia Credit Union Live at Richmond Raceway
- May 9 - Mastodon and Gojira
- May 9 – Dopapod w/ Jouwala Collective
- May 26 – Black Joe Lewis
CHARLOTTESVILLE CONCERTS
At the John Paul Jones Arena
- May 10 - Zach Bryan
At the Ting Pavilion
- May 1 - Nickel Creek
- May 11- Joe Russo's Almost Dead
- May 18 - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
At the Jefferson Theater
- May 2 - Lucinda Williams
- May 9 - Josh Ritter and the Royal City Band
- May 24 - The Lone Bellow
- May 25 - Rising Appalachia
At the Paramount Theater
- May 7 - Morgan Wade
- May 17 - Audra McDonald
CENTRAL VIRGINIA CONCERTS
At the Beacon Theatre in Hopewell
- May 5 - SCHISM – Tool Tribute Band
- May 10 – The Cream of Clapton Band
- May 14 – Chrisette Michele
- May 20 - A Brothers Revival: Tribute to the Allman Brothers Band
After Hours Concerts at The Meadow Event Park in Doswell
- May 19 - Jo Dee Messina
HAMPTON ROADS CONCERTS
At the Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
- May 14 - Janet Jackson & Ludacris
At the Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion in Portsmouth
- May 17 – Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
- May 27 – Boyz II Men
At the Norva in Norfolk
- May 12 – Railroad Earth
- May 16 – Frank Turner + The Interrupters
- May 17 – Dark Star Orchestra
- May 26 – Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
At the Chartway Arena in Norfolk
- May 13 – Mother's Day 90's R&B Ladies Night featuring Bobby Brown, Dru Hill, 112, Silk, Hi Five & Soul for Real
SHENANDOAH VALLEY CONCERTS
At the Bright Box Theater in Winchester
- May 12 – Tyler Booth w/ Scott Kurt
- May 27 – The Bob Band: Bob Dylan Tribute w/ Sweet Mountain Laurel
At the Lime Kiln Theater in Lexington
Photo Credit: Keith Lanpher
- May 20 – 49 Winchester
VIRGINIAS MOUNTAINS CONCERTS
At Elmwood Park in Roanoke
- May 26-28 – Roanoke Festival in the Park featuring 1964: The Tribute, Leonid & Friends, Led Head
At the Salem Civic Center in Salem
- May 21 - Foreigner
At the Harvester Performance Center in Rocky Mount
- May 1-2 – Morgan Wade
- May 6 – Kendell Marvel and A Thousand Horses
- May 12 – Corey Smith
- May 13 - Steep Canyon Rangers
- May 14 - Railroad Earth
- May 20 - The Gibson Brothers
- May 21 - Sierra Hull
SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA CONCERTS
At the Cameo Theater in Bristol
- May 10 - Roger McGuinn
- May 12 - The Jerry Douglas Band
- May 19 - Jason Petty “Hank & My Honky Tonk Heroes”
At the Paramount Center for the Arts in Bristol
- May 11 - Steep Canyon Rangers
- May 19 - A Brothers Revival: Tribute to the Allman Brothers Band
- May 21 - Mac Powell
At the Lincoln Theatre in Marion
Photo Credit: Earl Neikirk, @neikirkimage
- May 6 - Majesty: A Tribute to Queen
- May 12 - The FABBA Show: A Tribute to ABBA
At the Rex Theater in Galax
- May 6 - Appalachian Road Show
- May 12 - Presley Barker
- May 13 - Junior Sisk and Ramblers Choice
- May 19 - The Whitetop Mountain Band
- May 27 - The Church Sisters
At the Carter Family Fold in Hiltons
- May 6 - Crooked Road Ramblers
- May 13 - Carson Peters & Iron Mountain
- May 20 - Five Mile Mountain Road
- May 27 - Twin Creeks Stringband
NORTHERN VIRGINIA CONCERTS
Photo Credit: Cameron Davidson
At Wolf Trap National Park for Performing Arts in Vienna
- May 25-27 – The Avett Brothers
At Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow
- May 6 - Janet Jackson & Ludacris
At Jammin Java in Vienna
- May 5 - David Cook
- May 21 - The Bros. Landreth
- May 24 - Brian Dunne
At The Birchmere in Alexandria
- May 1 – The Wallflowers
- May 2 & 9 – Amy Grant
- May 6 – KT Tunstall & Martin Sexton
- May 8 – Cowboy Junkies
- May 13 – The Jerry Douglas Band
- May 21 - BoDeans
- May 27 - The Smithereens with Marshall Crenshaw
At EagleBank Arena in Fairfax
- May 27 - Cody Johnson
At the State Theatre in Falls Church
- May 6 – Mother's Little Helper:Tribute to The Rolling Stones
- May 12-13 – Bruce in the USA: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen
At the Tally Ho Theatre in Leesburg
- May 5 - Gaelic Storm
- May 6 - Gold Dust Woman: A Tribute to Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac
- May 10 - Dopapod
- May 11 - JD Simo
- May 12 - Strangelove: The Depeche Mode Experience
- May 13 - The Four Horsemen: The Album-Quality Metallica Tribute
- May 20 - Zoso: the Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience
- May 26 - Kameron Marlowe
- May 27 - Uncle Kracker
- May 28 - Ugly Kid Joe