Prelude Press
Prelude Press – An independent music outlet focused on discovering and sharing the best emerging artists and diving deeper with the ones you already love.
Outside Lands 2025, held August 8th–10th in Golden Gate Park, reaffirmed its place as one of the nation’s most immersive festival experiences. Headliners included Tyler, The Creator, Hozier, Doja Cat, Vampire Weekend, and Gracie Abrams, delivering a transformative weekend across seven stages and over 110 artists. Doechii emerged as a standout, delivering a politically charged set—boldly invoking “Free Palestine” and closing with her breakout hit—earning widespread acclaim. Tyler, The Creator anchored his headlining performance with raw energy and lyrical command. Though some critics felt a bit more spectacle could have elevated the experience, his fans disagreed and showed their appreciation to the Saturday night headliner. Hozier’s finale on Sunday was stirring and evocative, offering a powerful close to the weekend with an emotional invocation for peace and human rights. Hozier had the perfect mix of upbeat hits and soft tempo songs created the perfect Sunday night.
The festival also highlighted under-the-radar acts and regional talent. LaRussell brought Vallejo’s infectious spirit and local pride to a growing audience, sharing the stage with young rapper Ave in a touching moment of community uplift. Still Woozy, also a Bay Area native played the main stage on Friday afternoon. Bleachers delivered one of the weekend’s most electric sets on the Lands End stage, with Jack Antonoff commanding the crowd and asking the crowd to show other festivals that the States know how to party by asking people to crowdsurf and get on each others shoulders during hit songs “I Wanna Get Better” and “Rollercoster”. One of our favorite sets of the weekend was the indie rock band Flipturn at Twin Peaks stage on Saturday afternoon. The five piece band from Florida brought their electric energy and drummer Devon VonBalson made his way into the crowd at the end of their set. We also absolutely loved Big Freedia’s powerful appearance at the Dolores’ stage served as both a musical highlight and a political statement, offering spiritual resilience and queer joy in the face of personal adversity.
Outside Lands continued to impress with its world-class culinary lineup—featuring inventive dishes from Bay Area chefs that rivaled the music in memorability. Festival favorites included a beef chimichurri pho dip, a decadent lobster-tail Korean corn dog with mochi tempura and caviar, Nobu’s upscale chirashi bowl, a Peruvian-Eritrean choripán, and hearty Japanese curry—each serving as a testament to the region’s vibrant food culture. One of our favorite things we had to eat was the burgers from Mission Street Burgers.
Overall, despite a few logistical headaches like overcrowded transit and hiking water prices, Outside Lands 2025 delivered a vivid, stylish, and unforgettable festival—melding music, food, activism, and community into a seamless Golden Gate Park celebration that we can’t wait to be back at next August 7-9th 2026.