The Stern Grove Festival Returns with Free Live Summer Concerts!
San Francisco's Stern Grove Festival, a Bay Area tradition since the 1930s, returns this sumner with an awesome lineup of free outdoor concerts! While admission continues to be free for all concertgoers, advance reservations are required for all performances in the 2021 season.
The 2021 Stern Grove Festival kicks off on Sunday, June 20 and presents a wide range of musical performances in styles including rock, hip-hop, jazz, folk, classical, funk, and blues. This season's lineup is as follows:
- June 20: Ledisi, The Seshen, La Doña, LadyRyan
- June 27: Perfume Genius, Madame Gandhi, Honey Mahogany, LadyRyan
- July 4: San Francisco Symphony
- July 11: Thievery Corporation, Dessa, DJ Shortkut
- July 18: St. Paul & The Broken Bones, The Dip, DJ Omar
- July 25: X, The Avengers, DJ Omar
- August 1: Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
- August 8: Thundercat, Cassowary, DJ Shortkut
- August 15: Fitz & The Tantrums, Devon Gilfillian, DJ Omar
- August 29: The Big Picnic featuring Tower of Power, Too $hort, DJ Shortkut
All 2021 concerts will begin at 2 pm at Sigmund Stern Grove, a historic park and concert meadow located at 19th Avenue and Sloat Boulevard in San Francisco's Sunset District that offers an unparalleled outdoor setting for music lovers of all ages. Gates will open at noon.
Admission to each concert is free, although advance tickets are required. Additionally, attendance for each concert will be adjusted over time in order to protect public health while adhering to local, state, and federal regulations, with limited seating expected for at least the first few concert events.
At 2 pm 12 days before each event, an online portal will be opened through www.sterngrove.org to offer free tickets on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets go quickly, so make sure you reserve yours for your desired concert as close to the release time as possible.
Additional changes to the Stern Grove experience include the construction of new temporary fencing and other key infrastructure to help maintain proper social distancing, although patrons are welcome to once again bring their own food and beverages to enjoy. Other safety-related protocols will be announced closer to day-of-show via the festival's social media channels and website, and will be strictly enforced in order to protect the health and safety of patrons, performers, and staff. For more informaiton about COVID precautions at Stern Grove, visit their website.
If you can't attend in person, don't worry: Stern Grove Festival will also be live streaming its shows this year for the first time ever. Live stream events can be viewed for free on www.sterngrove.org on concert Sundays starting at 2 pm.
Photo: James Bachleda, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
