Compiled by: Sara Steil at Link and Kristi Kastrounis at HamptonRoads.com
School's officially out and summer is just getting started. Before you waste away your summer and the warm weather, take a peak at our Guide to Summer Concerts and Festivals. We'll keep updating and adding, so be sure to check back for this summer's best events.
Also, check out events calendar for other great ways to keep busy this summer or add your event. Feel free to leave a note if we're missing a stellar event in our line-up.
FESTIVALS:
June:
12th Annual Juneteenth Festival
Dates: June 19 - June 22, noon to 6 p.m.; Parade at 11 a.m. Saturday
Location: I.C. Norcom High School, 1801 London Boulevard, Portsmouth, 23704
Featuring: Atlanta Falcons NFL football star and Hampton Roads Churchland High School graduate Jamin Elliott will preside as grand marshall of the Juneteenth Festival Parade at 11 a.m. Saturday. Juneteenth celebrates the end of legalized slavery in America. The festival will include live entertainment, exhibitors, vendors and free family fun.
Bayou Boogaloo and Cajun Festival
Dates: June 20, 5-10 p.m.; June 21, noon-10 p.m.; June 22, noon-6 p.m.
Location:
Featuring: Musical performances will range from Rusted Root and Trombone Shorty to Cowboy Mouth and The Wild Magnolias. There will also be plenty of family activities.
Cost: Free
The King and the Legends of Rock and Roll
Dates: June 19 and 20, 7-10 p.m.; June 21 noon-10:30 p.m.
Location: Beachstreet Starfish Pavilion at
Featuring: Aside from the King, there are plenty of family activities ranging from a karoke contest and the Chalk the Walk competition to the Skydiving Kings.
Cost: Free
18th Annual Afrikan American Festival
Dates: June 27-29
Location: Downtown Hampton’s Mill Point Park, 100 Eaton Street, Hampton, 23669
Featuring: Musical entertainment including JuJu, Gator Almond, and TFC, as well as arts and crafts, clothing and ethnic food vendors.
Cost: $3 donation, proceeds will help support the Peninsula Association for Sickle Cell Anemia
July:
CaribFest
Dates: July 18-19
Location: Parade starts at Town Point Park and ends Harbor Park, 150 Park Avenue, Norfolk, 23510
Featuring: The festival framework is comprised of a “Street Exhibition” where you can expect to witness children and adults in a Carnival parade of masquerade bands, King and Queen Masqueraders, floats, costumes, Steel Drum Panorama, food fair, arts and crafts expo, and live concerts by SOCA and Calypso, Reggae, Latin, Reggaeton and Haitian performing artists.
Cost: $5 on Friday; $10 adults and $5 for children 6+
August:
East Coast Surfing Championships
Dates: Aug. 20-24
Location: Virginia Beach Boardwalk, with most activites taking place around 1st and 2nd Streets.
Featuring: Watch professionals and amateurs take to the waves and compete for cash prizes. If surfing isn’t your thing, there are numerous activities to keep you entertained, including swimsuit and skateboard competitions.
Cost: Free
6th Annual Soul Music Beachfest
Dates: Aug. 22 - Aug. 23
Location: Beachstreet Seaside Palladium at 24th Street/24th Street Park at the Oceanfront, Virginia Beach
Featuring: Music lovers will be treated to soft rock, jazz, Latin, and R&B at the two-day festival. The event focuses on local, regional, and national entertainment, food, activities, and ethnic arts and crafts.
Cost: Free
American Music Festival
Dates: Aug. 29-31
Location: Various locations at the Oceanfront, Virginia Beach
Featuring: The official schedule is yet to be released, but for three days, music rings along the oceanfront from 5th Street to 31st Street, providing the full soundtrack spectrum for every age and preference. 30 bands, including national recording artists, continue to celebrate the wide diversity of music styles, offering performances from dance to soul to rock to bluegrass and blues.
Cost: Admission for headliners range from $15 to $25. There are also free concerts.
Rock n' Roll Half-Marathon
Dates: Race begins at 7 a.m., Aug. 31
Location: Start Line at Virginia Beach Convention Center, 1000 19th St., Virginia Beach, 23451; and free live music all along the Oceanfront boardwalk.
Featuring: The event will feature 20 local bands, the best crowd support from over hundreds of cheerleaders and residents from surrounding neighborhoods, plus an amazing headliner concert on the sand. And, the Health and Fitness Expo is free and open to the public. Over 80 exhibitors will feature free samples, the latest in running gear, sports apparel, and health and nutritional information.
Cost: Free for music and spectating; $75-$105 to participate in the half-marathon.
September:
Dates: Sept. 19 - Sept. 21, 7 p.m.
Location: nTelos Wireless Pavilion, 901 Crawford Street, Portsmouth, 23704
Featuring: Portsmouth's annual UMOJA Festival will feature local and national R&B, Jazz and Gospel entertainers, educational exhibits, heritage trolley tours, a children's village, African marketplace, cultural corner, ethnic foods, African dancers and concessions.
Cost: Orchestra: $34; Gold Circle: $34; Lawn: $16
Dates: Sept. 26, noon-7 p.m.; Sept. 27, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.; Sept. 28, noon-6 p.m.
Location: Between 16th and 31st Streets,
Featuring: Live music will range from classic rock to Top 40.
Cost: Free
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