Even for someone who’s been multiple times, Bonnaroo can be a little overwhelming when you first get in the middle of it. With that in mind, we’ve assembled a field guide to help you get your bearings.
There are some changeups in the site layout, but the basic idea will be mostly familiar to ’Roo frequent flyers. One large field houses the main What Stage at one end, and this year That Tent has moved from Centeroo to the opposite end of that field, along the perimeter with The Arch entrance. A pair of broad pathways provide access to a second large field that makes up Centeroo, which features the second-largest Which Stage on one side, with This Tent and the electronic-centric The Other Stage and Where Stage on the other side. In the middle there’s Snake & Jake’s Love Shack, the How Stage (which hosts educational programming) and tons of vendors and branded pop-ups.
Per the notes released after the 2025 rain-out, areas of the campgrounds that got the worst flooding will not be used. But there will still be stages dotted around GA camping: Why at Plaza 2, When at Plaza 3, Groop at Plaza 5 (in the Groop Camping area, naturally), and The Grove at Plaza 7, while Plaza 9 houses the Silent Disco.
When Bonnaroo expanded to four days of official programming years ago, standard procedure was to have shows at the Centeroo stages on Thursday and then open up What Stage for the weekend on Friday. Organizers flipped that script for 2026, as part of the aforementioned post-flood changes, and Thursday is basically one big concert at What Stage. Rockers Spiritual Cramp kick it off at 5:30 p.m., singer and rapper Vince Staples goes on at 7, electronic producer Four Tet plays at 8:30 and headlining producer-DJ and wacky-haired 2010s EDM poster child Skrillex goes on at 10:30.
Total Wife at Drkmttr for 615 Indie Live, 2/7/2026
Here’s something cool about how the festival is tapping into the Nashville music ecosystem: Local promoters are a bit more visibly involved. Bummeroo, which has hosted its own alternative to ’Roo over the past few years, is presenting the lineup on the Groop stage in the afternoon on Thursday, with locals like Meadowglade and Disappearing Teeth Trick. Rocknite Nashville (a local exponent of a group that also books shows in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Chicago and New York) hosts a recurring show at Skinny Dennis, and they’re in charge of the Friday late-night and Saturday evening lineups at Groop, with Music City faves like book NOT brooke, Total Wife, VEAUX and massie99.
The Strokes
Friday is when Bonnaroo gets under full steam, and the addition of That Tent to the What Stage field could really come in handy if you’re a rock and punk fan. That Tent highlights include North Carolina rawk gawds Wednesday (2:30 p.m.), snarly Aussies The Chats (4 p.m.) and wildly popular indie rockers Geese (7:45 p.m.). There’s also some can’t-miss rock right around the corner on the second-largest Which Stage, with Lambrini Girls (1:15 p.m.), Wet Leg (6 p.m.) and Turnstile (12:30 a.m.). Dev Hynes’ futuristic R&B project Blood Orange at That Tent (10 p.m.) is a good bet for teeing up Aughts punk kings The Strokes’ headlining set on What Stage (11 p.m.). The creaking of my knees amplifies when I realize that Julian Casablancas and company qualify as this year’s legacy headliner.
If you’re up for a grab bag, you could just park at What Stage for Irish folksters Amble (3:15 p.m.), ’90s folk-rock-jam outfit Blues Traveler (4:45 p.m.), slangy and theatrically inclined English pop weirdo YUNGBLUD (6:45 p.m.) and producer-DJ Griz (8:45 p.m.). There’s more standout R&B and hip-hop to enjoy at This Tent, from Pawpaw Rod (1:30 p.m.) and Smino (7:45 p.m.) to king of crunk Lil Jon shutting down That Tent (12:15 a.m.). The dance music cranks up with Jackie Hollander (4 p.m.) taking The Other for its maiden voyage of the year, and it keeps going through Inzo’s sunrise set (4:15 to 5:30 a.m.); there’s a full lineup at Where Stage as well, including the producer with the best stage name in dance music right now, Mary Droppinz (2:15 a.m.).
Alabama Shakes at Ascend Amphitheater, 7/25/2025
On Saturday, more Nashville talent takes the big stages, with soul powerhouse Alabama Shakes at What Stage (6:45 p.m.) and multifaceted pop rockers Rainbow Kitten Surprise at Which Stage (7:45 p.m.). Nashville’s own Kesha is leading this year’s Superjâm Esotérica: The Alchemy of Pop at This Tent (8:45 p.m.), while Oklahoma transplant and rising country star Wyatt Flores is at That Tent (5:45 p.m.). There’s also an Aussie undercurrent this day, with delightful electropop oddballs Confidence Man at That Tent (2:30 p.m.), punk firebrands Amyl and the Sniffers at Which Stage (5:45 p.m.) and electronic group Rüfüs Du Sol headlining at What Stage (11:10 p.m.).
Songsmith, DJ and drag queen supreme Trixie Mattel reigns at That Tent (4 p.m.), The Runarounds bring their better-than-made-for-TV indie-rock party to This Tent (5 p.m.), and well-tatted R&B shouter Teddy Swims hits Which Stage (9:45 p.m.). For your late night, the cartoon-goblin-voiced punk champion John Dwyer and his Osees play This Tent (12:30 a.m.), hard-hitting hip-hop dream team Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist are at That Tent (12:50 a.m.) and “Weird Al” Yankovic’s Bigger and Weirder Saturday Late Night Rooview comes to Which Stage (12:40 a.m.). There’ll still be lots of electronic acts on Sunday, but the dance party reaches a fever pitch Saturday night with Gorgon City playing The Other till sunrise (2:15-5:15 a.m.) and the final sets of the weekend at Where Stage, wrapped up by Effin (5:45-6:30 a.m.).
Girl Tones
Sunday is the homestretch, but the party takes its time to wind down. Kentucky bluesman Nat Myers warms up This Tent (12:30 p.m.), while top-notch sisterly Kentucky rock duo Girl Tones sets the, uh, tone for rocking songsmith Sabrina Teitelbaum’s Blondshell at That Tent (1:30 and 3 p.m., respectively). If it isn’t against some rule to have a festival without Trombone Shorty, maybe it should be; thankfully, he’s here at What Stage (3:45 p.m.), and you’ve also got the soulful blues rock of Tedeschi Trucks Band at What (5:30 p.m). A three-in-a-row lineup of very different bangers closes out Which Stage for the weekend, with thoughtfully rocking Japanese Breakfast (4:30 p.m.), reunited hip-hop aces Clipse (6:30 p.m.) and a regular set from the aforementioned pop maestro Kesha herself (8:30 p.m.).
Pacific Northwest rock stalwarts Modest Mouse close out This Tent (8:15 p.m.), stellar R&B songsmith Mariah the Scientist plays the farewell set at That Tent (8:30 p.m.) and LSZEE, a meeting of the minds of dance-music duo LSDream and producer Clozee, shuts down The Other (8:15 p.m.). With his new LP The Great Divide hot off the presses, folk-mericana star Noah Kahan is your final headliner at What Stage (9:30 p.m.) And in true Bonnaroo fashion, if that’s not your speed, NOLA-based, clown-themed LCD Soundsystem tribute LSD Clownsystem has a special performance called Lovefool happening simultaneously over at Centeroo inside Snake & Jake’s (9 p.m.).
Diving into the who, what, when, where and why of the two major music festivals that hit Middle Tennessee at the start of summer
