Hometown heroes Green Day, Top 40 hitmaker Justin Timberlake and rising folk-pop star Noah Kahan have been announced as the headliners for the 2025 BottleRock Napa Valley, which takes place May 23-25 at the Napa Valley Expo in downtown Napa.
Yet, they are only three of the more than 80 acts set to perform at the annual Memorial Day weekend event.
Beyond those headliners, here are seven of the acts we are really looking forward to seeing at the 2025 festival. We’ll list them in order of our enthusiasm level.
1. Robby Krieger
This was the name that immediately caught our attention when the lineup reached our inbox. And it’s no wonder, given that Krieger hails from one of the Top 5 greatest rock bands of all time — The Doors — and he’s also one of the finest classic rock guitarists on the planet. We’ve seen him perform in his native L.A. a couple of times in recent years and both shows were amazing.
2. Public Enemy
Still down to “Fight the Power” after all these years, the mighty Chuck D is simply one of the most influential, important and downright impressive figures in hip-hop history. Pretty much any opportunity to catch this rapper in concert is one well worth taking.
3. Goose
The most buzzed-about young jam-band on the circuit is heading to Napa, ready to delight folks with plenty of revved-up improvisational mayhem. Both Phish “Phans” and Deadheads seem to agree that this Wilton, Connecticut, troupe is out of sight.
4. Kate Hudson
Yes, THAT Kate Hudson, the one we love from such films as “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” “You, Me and Dupree,” “Fool’s Gold,” “Bride Wars” and, of course, “Almost Famous.” The Oscar-nominated actor is also a legit pop-rock vocalist, touring in support of the 2024 debut studio album “Glorious.”
5. 4 Non Blondes
Party like it’s 1992 and turn out to sing along — at top volume — with the Bay Area band that gave us one of the decade’s most memorable hits. Yes, of course, we’re talking about “What’s Up?” So practice your “hey, hey, hey, hey” and join the fun.
6. Bad Nerves
It’s totally OK to start telling people, right now, that the Bad Nerves are your new favorite British punk/power-pop outfit. Because it won’t be long before the Bad Nerves bandwagon is running at full capacity.
7. Jalen Ngonda
Elton John reportedly predicted that Ngonda “is going to be a huge star.” Listening to the soul singer’s “Come Around and Love Me,” we believe Sir Elton could indeed be right.
BottleRock Napa Valley is also matching every dollar donated by fans for the first $50,000 to support FireAid, a benefit concert dedicated to aiding those affected by the devastating wildfires in Southern California. To donate to FireAid, click the donate button at BottleRockNapaValley.com.