Outside Lands Festival

In the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, a haze of music and art descended upon the 15th annual Outside Lands Festival from August 11th to 13th, 2023. As SF’s fog rolled in and out, the sold-out festival saw 75,000 attendees per day enjoy three full days of a diverse lineup, immersive experiences, and the vibrant celebration of a thriving culture.

The festival’s Lands End stage, the crown jewel of Outside Lands, saw a trifecta of headliners that ignited the weekend. Kendrick Lamar transformed the opening night into a powerful showcase of his lyrical prowess for a simple yet dynamic performance of hits that had the crowd going. Saturday belonged to the Foo Fighters, who delivered a high-octane performance that bridged generations and had the crowd rocking to their anthems. As a surprise, Michael Bublé joined the band on stage to sing his very well-known song, “Haven’t Met You Yet,” following a gag that involved frontman Dave Grohl to call Bublé, who was holding an “I ♡ Bublé” sign, out from the crowd. Odesza brought the festival to a close on Sunday with a light show and fireworks, and with rising R&B artist Izzy Bizu (whom we were able to grab portraits with) joining them on stage for her featuring song, “Forgive Me.”

Meanwhile, over at the Twin Peaks stage, the crowd never stopped dancing to Zedd’s signature EDM beats during his set on Friday. Lana Del Rey’s hauntingly beautiful vocals took center stage on Saturday, drawing dedicated fans and casual listeners alike into her dreamy universe. Finally, The 1975 rounded off the weekend at the Twin Peaks stage with a setlist of iconic and recognizable tracks from their discography that delighted the audience. Other acts from the weekend included Noah Kahan, who closed out the Sutro stage on Sunday at the same time as Odesza and The 1975 and drew his own sizable crowd, girl group Aespa, who became the first K-pop group to perform at Outside Lands, and Conan Gray, who was a surprise addition to the lineup two weeks before the festival. Janelle Monae, NIKI, Inhaler, Megan Thee Stallion, DJ Diesel (Shaq) – the list goes on and on, with artists across all sorts of genres featured.

A roster of rising artists played on the smaller Panhandle stage, including Manila Gray and Pretty Sick, as well as filled the first first part of each day on the other stages, including Wednesday, La Doña, and No Vacation. No Vacation, who opened the Lands End mainstage on Saturday, drew a loving crowd as the band has roots in San Francisco. We were able to catch them for portraits backstage of the Toyota Music Den right before they performed a second, more intimate but no less fun set later in the afternoon.

Beyond the tunes, festival-goers were able to fill their day with several experiences and activities all throughout the festival grounds, of course including countless local vendors for food and drinks, proudly showcasing the SF Bay Area’s incredible food scene. Local businesses and artists were set up in a marketplace section for people to browse in between sets. Unique to Outside Lands, there was a designated area called Grass Lands, catering to festival-goers over 21 who wished to indulge in cannabis (a thing loved in the Bay Area) responsibly and served as a laid-back haven away from the throngs of people everywhere else. A new addition this year, Dolores’ open-air dance floor added a new dimension to the festival’s ambiance, offering a space for dance parties throughout the day. It celebrated the queer and trans community that is so vital to San Francisco’s culture, with three local queer promoters each programming a day of the festival.

Amidst the backdrop of Golden Gate Park’s lush greenery and the ever-present coastal fog, Outside Lands has a unique vibe for a summertime festival, with temperature never really going above 70o F. It makes for some interesting festival outfits – for example, there was a group who dressed up as park rangers, while another was all dressed in colonial costumes from head (wigs) to toe (footwear, probably). Despite the sun only coming out for a few hours the entire weekend and misting by the end of the day, everyone had high spirits, whether they were relaxing on the hills and fields on blankets or deep in the crowd to see their favorite artists’ sets.

Check out the gallery from all three days of the festival below. Outside Lands will return to San Francisco August 9th through the 11th of next year!