Some legendary Mexican American rock vets and a tribute to a late Mexican American pop star will be among the top attractions on the Minnesota State Fair’s free stages in 2025, the lineups for which were unveiled Thursday morning with as eclectic a roster as ever.
East Los Angeles’ Grammy-winning road warriors Los Lobos will return for a two-night stand Aug. 25 and 26 in the Bandshell Tonight! series, where a new touring tribute band Karla Pérez: Selena the Show also is scheduled Aug. 29 and 30. Now in their fifth decade of blending borderland music genres, Los Lobos played to large, dancing crowds and earned a rave response on the same stage in 2004.
The band shell’s 2025 schedule also features: collegiate ‘90s hip-hop hitmakers Arrested Development of “Tennessee” fame; “Fight Song” pop-rock singer Rachel Platten; rising Texas country bro Tayler Holder, and this year’s homegrown headliner for the fair’s final two nights, indie-pop songwriter Ber.
Mexican American performers also will be prominently featured during the daytime slots at the band shell, with cult-loved alt-twanger Rosie Flores on the schedule along with another Texas music institution, Mariachi Campanas de America. Some of the bandshell’s other daytime performers will include: New Orleans piano groover Jon Cleary; Oklahoma country rockers Jason Scott & the High Heat; Twin Cities roots music faves Davina & the Vagabonds, Dylan Salfer, Sarah Morris and Sweet Colleens; and touring tributes to Jimmy Buffett, John Denver, Neil Diamond and Johnny Cash.
A haven for more recently buzzing Minnesota music acts in recent years, the West End Market Stage at Schilling Amphitheater landed a nighttime lineup for 2025 that includes R&B/electro-soul singer Lady Midnight, former Why Don’t We boy-band member Jonah Marais, bluesy rocker Joyann Parker and the annual First Avenue Goes to the Fair revue. Among the daytime performers scheduled at the West End are Nicholas David, Mary Bue, Cindy Lawson, Los Rebeldes, Cole Diamond, Mother Banjo and Wild Horses.
The Summit Stage at the Bazaar will boast more Twin Cities scene music vets at night, with a lineup featuring Malamanya, the Belfast Cowboys, Jaybee and the Routine, and Pamela McNeill. Also at the Bazaar: The Cedar Cultural Center will present another Global Get-Together over two nights, Aug. 29 and 30, featuring internationally rooted Twin Cities performers.
Along with the more than 100 live music acts announced Thursday, State Fair organizers also listed the usual vast array of other free entertainment that will be offered in 2025, including All-Star Stunt Dogs Splash and Timberworks Lumberjack Show at the North Woods Stage, the State Fair High School Marching Band Competition, Mia Dorr’s Premier Karaoke in the Garden and a United Nations-like list of ethnic dance shows.
The music announced for the free stages joins a nearly complete list of 2025 grandstand headliners (ticketed performances) announced so far. Those include Def Leppard (Aug. 26), Melissa Etheridge and Indigo Girls (Aug. 24), Meghan Trainor (Aug. 22), Hank Williams Jr. and Marty Stuart (Aug. 27), the Steve Miller Band (Aug. 28), Atmosphere (Aug. 23) and the Avett Brothers (Aug. 29).
