BottleRock Napa Valley brings Chili Peppers, Lizzo and gourmet food to Wine Country
NAPA -- The tenth edition of BottleRock Napa Valley brings three days of music, gourmet food and regional wines to the North Bay this Memorial Day weekend with headliners Post Malone, Lizzo and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
In the fall of 2021, the festival was finally held after being pushed back from its traditional Memorial Day weekend dates following an over a year delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite facing some challenges including two headliners (Stevie Nicks and Chris Stapleton) who cancelled due to health concerns and non-COVID illness, the 2021 staging of BottleRock Napa Valley was a rousing success that happily did not end up being a super-spreader event thanks in part to the safety precautions taken by organizers. A year ago, the fest was once again held on the holiday weekend at the end of May with Metallica, Twenty One Pilots, P!nk and Luke Combs among the acts topping the bill.
Others notable acts performing this weekend include hip-hop upstart Lil Nas X, '80s heroes Duran Duran, alternative rock favorites the Smashing Pumpkins, rising bluegrass guitar phenom Billy Strings, veteran disco-funk group Nile Rodgers & Chic, legendary hip-hop crew the Wu Tang Clan and much more.
Hip-hop star Post Malone -- one of the biggest rappers to emerge in the past dozen years -- closes out the festivities on the main Jam Cellars stage Friday following sets from Strings (6:30 p.m.), British indie-pop band Bastille (5 p.m.) and DC-based electronica favorite Thievery Corporation (3:30 p.m.). BottleRock also presents an array of pop, hip hop and rock acts across the other five stages that day, including unhinged LA punk act Starcrawler (4:45 p.m. Allianz Stage), a trio of alt-rock hitmakers on the Verizon Stage with closers the Smashing Pumpkins (8:05 p.m.) performing hits and songs from their new conceptual opus ATUM after sets from Phantogram (6:15 p.m.) and the Airborne Toxic Event (3:15 p.m.), and appearances by Bay Area acts like SF-based blues rockers the Stone Foxes (3:30 p.m. Truly Stage) and legendary Invisibl Skratch Piklz and Beastie Boys turntable maestro Mixmaster Mike, who will team with fellow hip-hop experimentalist DJ Logic (8:45 p.m. Truly Stage).
Saturday's jam-packed Jam Cellars Stage schedule includes headlining body positive hip-hop/soul chart-topper and live powerhouse Lizzo (8:15 p.m.) following a soul and pop heavy schedule that includes throwback R&B singer Leon Bridges (6:15 p.m.), pop star Carly Rae Jepsen (4:45 p.m.) and funk/disco legends Nile Rodgers & Chic (3:15 p.m.). Other highlights include the eclectic mix of dance music on the Allianz Stage with experimental violinist/vocalist Sudan Archives (4:15 p.m.), indie hip-hop/soul artist Cautious Clay (5:45 p.m.), SoCal lowrider R&B group Thee Sacred Souls (7:15 p.m.), and German techno marching band Meute (8:45 p.m.), while the Verizon Stage hosts noted rapper Lupe Fiasco (2:15 p.m.), actor Keanu Reeve's revived rock band Dogstar (3:45 p.m.) and left-field electronic pop singer Tove Lo (6:45 p.m.) before '80s icons Duran Duran (8:20 p.m.) close out the stage with their seemingly inexhaustible supply of hit tunes.
Sunday's main headliners the Red Hot Chili Peppers have been making their unique mix punk, funk, psychedelic rock and hip-hop since first coming together four decades ago. Leading up to their festival-ending set will be a wide array of Jam Cellars Stage acts including the return of rising young North Bay alt-rock band the Alive (12:30 p.m.) and British glam-rock revivalists the Struts (2 p.m.) as well as upcoming Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and songwriter Sheryl Crow (3:30 p.m.) and acclaimed alt-rockers the National (6:30 p.m.). Meanwhile, the Allianz Stage shifts to more throwback soul, world music and blues-rooted sounds with performances by Marin County psychedelic R&B crew Monophonics (2:45 p.m.), Cuban funk party-starter Cimafunk (4:15 p.m.), young blues guitar phenom Christone "Kingfish" Ingram (5:45 p.m.), legendary blues artist and Bay Area institution Taj Mahal (7:15 p.m.) and Los Angeles Latin-rock veterans Los Lobos (8:45 p.m.), while hip-hop fans will doubtless gravitate towards the Verizon Stage for headlining sets by influential Staten Island crew the Wu-Tang Clan (6:15 p.m.) and controversial hip-hop upstart Lil' Nas X (8:15 p.m.). The full line-up and stage schedules are available on the BottleRock website.
BottleRock also welcomes back the Williams-Sonoma Culinary Stage that will present a schedule of chef demonstrations and performances that will feature an all-star line-up of chefs interacting with a variety of musicians, vitners, well-known actors and professional athletes. The stage will once again be hosted by KCBS "Foodie Chap" Liam Mayclem, who will introduce such figures as including José Andrés, Giada De Laurentiis, David Chang & Chris Ying, Roy Choi, Andrew Zimmern, Aarón Sánchez and the Voltaggio Brothers, who will be joined by music acts Lil Nas X, John Taylor & Roger Taylor of Duran Duran, Wu-Tang Clan, Bastille, Keanu Reeves and Dogstar, as well as local rock legends Sammy Hagar, Tré Cool of Green Day and dozens more.
The festival is also hosting a packed line-up of aftershows happening in Napa as well as San Francisco starting Thursday evening with a number of bands appearing at BottleRock -- most notably the Smashing Pumpkins, Phantogram, Thee Sacred Souls, Thievery Corporation, the Struts and Cautious Clay -- headlining their own concerts at more intimate venues for those festival attendees with the energy and the funds to purchase separate tickets. While all tickets to BottleRock are currently sold out, the festival has opened it's official ticket exchange website for those interested in buying or selling tickets. More information on the festival is available at the BottleRock Napa Valley website.
BottleRock Napa Valley 2023
Friday-Sunday, May 26-28, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. $389-$5,495 (sold out)
Napa Valley Expo