Wonderfront 2025: Best Line-up To Date?
There’s no better way to kick off the summer than chilling at the San Diego Embarcadero during the annual Wonderfront Music Festival. Beer in hand, fish taco in your mouth, and music blasting across five different stages; it’s peak San Diego livin’. Last year’s festival marked its best lineup to date with super-star acts like J.I.D., Carly Rae Jepsen, and The Roots. The line-up was extraordinary and the performances were top-tier, but it looks like Wonderfront might be trying to outdo itself in 2025. Ranging from country to hip hop, to R&B and electronica, here’s a look at this year’s line-up highlights you won’t want to miss.
Freddie Gibbs
Photo Credit CAA
Every year, Wonderfront brings in a heap of hip-hop talent, and this year is no exception. Following acts like Schoolboy Q, Earthgang, Paris Texas, and J.I.D., it’s Freddie Gibbs’ turn to pick up the mic. Gibbs spent years cutting his teeth on the underground circuit, dropping records like “Pinata” and “Bandana” with legendary producer Madlib in 2014, and “Alfredo” alongside The Alchemist in 2020. After dropping his record-label debut, “$oul $old $eparately,” in 2022, Gibbs has been busy touring and performing, even stopping by San Diego in 2023 for Dia De Los Deftones. This set promises to be the highlight hip-hop set of the festival.
Anderson.Paak & The Free Nationals
Photo Credit: mn2s
For anyone who loved BADBADNOTGOOD’s set at last year’s festival, here comes round two. Anderson.Paak’s eclectic performativity, combined with The Free Nationals’ R&B virtuosity, is expected to deliver a fan-favorite set for musicians and non-musicians alike. Additionally, between Paak’s and the National’s combined discographies, there’s an incredible variety of fun-fueled R&B, electronic, and disco-inspired tracks for them to perform. Clear your festival schedule, this set is going to be packed, and rightfully so.
Janelle Monáe
Photo Credit: Wasserman
Anderson Paak and Janelle Monáe on the same setlist is crazy; Wonderfront asked, “Does SD like R&B??” and SD must have said “YES” because here we are with the King and Queen of 2010s neo-R&B. Monáe’s newest record, “The Age of Pleasure,” is geared towards summer vibes with poolside hits like “Champagne S**t/Black Sugar Beach” and “Float.” Hopefully, she’ll round out her setlist with tracks from her critically acclaimed records “The ArchAndroid” and “Dirty Computer.”
Magdalena Bay
Photo Credit Lissyelle Laricchia
The art-pop duo Magdalena Bay has been riding the high of critical acclaim since their recent studio release, “Imaginal Disk,” in 2024. Performing this summer at music festivals all across the country, the band is stopping by San Diego to join us at Wonderfront for an art-pop-fueled journey through the cosmic disco of 2003 free-trial DVDs. Their music sounds like what I imagine that dude from Space Cadet Pinball is listening to as he flies across the digital spaceways of Windows XP. While this set might not appeal to anyone looking for average pop music, I think its retro sound will hit an unlikely chord with the millennial crowd nostalgic for acts like Alanis Morrissette or Madonna.
PawPaw Rod
Photo Credit: Facebook
PawPaw Rod is one of the smaller artists on this list; he has yet to drop a full-length album, but after a stand-out performance at Lightning in a Bottle 2024, he has become one of my ‘artists to watch.’ His set was lively, carefree, and organic, yet he and his band presented themselves as refined and musically informed performers. The chemistry on stage was unbelievable and infectious—I couldn’t believe he wasn’t a headlining artist. Despite barely dropping any singles since last summer, don’t miss the chance to see him and his incredible band perform live.
Saint Luna
Photo Credit: Instagram
While last year’s festival had a mix of big artists and small ones, this year settled at the upper mid-range. And despite that, Saint Luna has carried over as the only returning performer from last year’s festival. The San Diego-based band has been hard at work on a new album since dropping their self-titled debut LP in January of last year; hopefully, some new material will make an appearance at this year’s festival. Another band to keep an eye on, Saint Luna’s SoCal brand of Rock ‘n’ Roll is some of the best, fresh music coming out of our city right now.
4 Non Blondes
Photo Credit: Red Light Management
What’s Up? 4 Non Blondes are back together after 30 years?? Oh, and their second show together is at Wonderfront??? Say less hun, we’re on our way. Not only is this band legendary (and worth seeing) for their 1992 opus, “Bigger, Better, Faster, More,” the reunion of this alt-pop institution is the kind of coming together the beautiful people of the U.S.A. need right now. Do your patriotic duty: step outside, take a deep breath, and scream at the top of your lungs, “WHAT’S GOING ON?!”
Julien Baker & Torres
Photo Credit: Matador Records
Teaming up for a country album (set to be released in April), Nashville alums Julien Baker and Torres are bringing their queer brand of line-dancing tunes to San Diego. Bonding over their shared experience growing up queer in conservative Christian families, the duo have composed an album that celebrates diversity in the country music scene and brings the reality of gender-based exclusivity to light in a sobering but amorous fashion. Country fans are going to like this one already, but the duo is bringing an extra dash of sugar that’ll attract anyone walking by their stage (if you aren’t there already, you better be!).
