OSHKOSH – Country stars, rock bands, the best Christian artists, live jazz and more.
Summer in Oshkosh certainly isn’t wanting for a variety of music acts.
Live performances will definitely be the highlight of this year’s summer concert series across the city, as Oshkosh features no fewer than eight major shows between May and September.
Here’s what’s still coming as summer continues.
Here’s a list of what’s happening this summer:
Lifest 2025
The Christian music festival Lifest 2025 is slated for the Sunnyview Expo Center, 500 E. County Y, July 10-13 with a number of Christian artists including Cain, Newsboys, Sidewalk Prophets and Ben Fuller.
The festival also features a number of speakers, seminars and booths in the Expo building and Grandstand.
Here are a few of the performing acts:
Music on Main
The free concert series Music on Main features weekly performances from a variety local and regional acts every Wednesday evening (5:30-7 p.m.) in Opera House Square, 315 N. Main St., from June to September. Here’s the lineup:
Waterfest
Waterfest, the annual summer concert series, runs on eight Thursday nights from June 12 to Aug. 14 at the Leach Amphitheater, 303 Ceape Ave.
Teachers are admitted free on the opening night while tickets are available for purchase at waterfest.org.
Canadian rock band Loverboy is scheduled to headline this year’s series along with fellow rock acts Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, George Thorogood and the Destroyers, and The Cat Empire. Here’s the lineup:
XRoads41
Country music stars Cody Johnson, Kane Brown, Parker McCollum and Jessie Murph are set to headline the second annual XRoads music festival Aug. 7-9 at Oshkosh Festivals Park.
Three-time Grammy Award-winning rapper Nelly and multi-Grammy Award-nominated artist Flo Rida also will be among the star-studded performers, which includes Parmalee, Pecos and The Rooftops, and Drew Green.
Tickets are on sale at xroads41.com with three-day tickets starting at $119. Here’s the lineup:
The Grand Oshkosh
The Grand Oshkosh’s 2024-25 season features a number of entertainment events during this summer and through September at 100 High Ave. Tickets are on sale at https://thegrandoshkosh.org/. Here’s what’s planned:
Oshkosh Jazz Festival
Hosted by Benny Benack III, the fifth annual Oshkosh Jazz Festival is slated for Aug. 23 in downtown Oshkosh in the 400 block North Main Street.
Award-winning jazz pianist and composer Emmet Cohen will headline the free event, which also features vocalists Mar Vilaseca and Sal “The Voice” Valentinetti.
Live music at local bars
Oshkosh isn’t wanting for live acts during the summer, with several bars and restaurants staging local performances on a weekly basis.
Fletch’s Local Tap House, 566 N. Main St., has the Jazz Orgy every Sunday while there is also live jazz on tap at Becket’s, 2 Jackson St., on Wednesdays.
Sturgeon Spirits, 2663 Oregon St., will also stage a Patio Series through July 19, featuring performances by Bob Campbell, Ian Seaholm, Todd Wolbers and Peter Loewenstein.
Fox River Brewing Company has live performances on its patio Thursday through Sunday. The hours are 5:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and 5-8 p.m. on Sunday.
A free community jam is held on the first Saturday of every month at the Oshkosh Public Library, 106 Washington Ave., from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Contact Justin Marville at jmarville@gannett.com and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @justinmarville.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Summer music in Oshkosh continues with Lifest, Waterfest, Music on Main & XRoads41
Reporting by Justin Marville, Oshkosh Northwestern / Oshkosh Northwestern
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