Are you ready to unleash your best dance moves and groove to some killer music this year? Well you're in luck, because we’ve lined up the festivals happening this spring, summer and beyond around Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast that’ll keep you raving all day and night long.
So, get your besties together and start planning your outfits, because these are the Queensland music festivals not to be missed this year (or next).
Just In: Splendour In The Grass Won't Return In 2025
In heartbreaking news for live music lovers, the Splendour in the Grass festival will not return in 2025. According to festival organisers, they need "a little more time to recharge" and will "come back even bigger and better when the time is right".
Splendour in the Grass, which has been an annual highlight of the Australian festival lineup since 2001, was also cancelled in 2024. It's clear it's more critical now than ever before to continue to supporting Australian live music and local artists.
KNOTFEST
From heavy metal to Japanese kawaii metal, KNOTFEST has music from just about every sub-genre of metal. So whether you’re into screamo or rock, this festival will have the rager vibes you’re after. Featuring headliners Slipknot, A Day to Remember, and BABYMETAL, as well as a KNOTFEST museum and some epic VIP benefits such as side-stage viewing and a backstage tour, this festival is bound to be the event of the year for metal fans. General admission tickets are open for everyone aged 15 and up, and they’re selling out fast so make sure to secure your ticket here. Can’t make the festival? The KNOTFEST artists will also be playing a variety of ‘sideshow’ concerts and you can check out their website for more info here.
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CMC Rocks
We didn’t forget about the country music fans and neither did CMC Rocks. The CMC Rocks country music festival is coming to Queensland this March. It has sold out, but if you’re quick enough you’ll be able to snatch some resale tickets from 31 January here. Come along for a day out, or commit to the full camping (or glamping if you’re like me) experience and stick around for the long weekend. Come for country headliners Thomas Rhett, Cody Johnson, and Jon Pardi, and stay for the food, market stalls, beard bar, photo ops and ferris wheel.
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Ultra Australia
The Beach and music… together? It doesn’t get much better than that. Ultra Music Festival is coming to the Gold Coast this year and the beach dance party will be a hard one to miss with its lineup of reputable EDM DJs from all over the world. There will be some fantastic headliners such as Swedish House Mafia’s Axwell, Da Tweekaz, Knockz, Martin Garrix and Sub Zero Project. Final release tickets are on sale now and you can score a general admission or VIP ticket here for $188 or $350, respectively.
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Bluesfest
Bluesfest Byron Bay, Australia's premier and most awarded music festival, has announced that the 2025 edition will be its final curtain call. After 35 years of celebrating the very best in blues, roots music and beyond, the legendary institution that has brought the world’s greatest artists to Australia, plus a whole bunch of our own, will host its last festival on the legendary Byron Events Farm.
The 2025 festival will be a fitting finale, honouring the legacy of those who have made it what it is today—from the artists to the fans. The first of many artist announcements for the 2025 festival has just dropped and Crowded House, Vance Joy, Tones and I, Gary Clark Jr and Rag'n'Bone Man are just a small handful of the huge headliner acts. The Bluesfest team has promise they are going all out with a lineup that reflects the spirit of what Bluesfest has always been about: world-class music, unforgettable performances, and a community that loves and supports live music.
The Details
When: Thursday 17 April to Sunday 20 April 2025
Where: Byron Events Farm, Byron Bay
Find out more here.
Rabbits Eat Lettuce
Tired of city life? Need to touch some grass? Rabbits Eat Lettuce is the ideal all-inclusive camping/festival experience for you. Thought of as the ‘festival of the forest’ you’ll leave this three to four night adventure feeling refreshed and invigorated. With the combination of dancing along to DJs and live musicians, yoga classes, and workshops, this festival probably offers the most fulfilling lineup this year. Camping is included in your festival ticket, but if you’re short on gear you can pay extra to rent an RV or ‘glamping’ tent. Form a community of like-minded festival-goers as you dance with strangers and share stories under the stars.
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Out 2 Lunch
Leave your sandos at home, because Fisher is taking us OUT 2 LUNCH for the second year running. Following the success of the first event at Coolangatta Beach in 2024, the OUT 2 LUNCH Festival with Vodafone is back again, this time taking place on the beach at Surfers Paradise. Not only is he performing on both Saturday and Sunday night, he is bringing some serious talent with him, including Hayden James, Chris Lake, Patrick Topping, DJ Boring, Little Fritter and more. It’s the perfect way to farewell the heat of summer, with the option to rave across both days or stick to just one day if you prefer a smaller dose. Don’t miss out on the biggest dance event to ever grace Surfers Paradise.
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Woodstock
Yeehaw, it’s time to dust off the cowboy boots because Woodstock Farm in Tamborine is adding a brand new event to the country music calendar with their Legends of Country festival on 31 May. Blessing your ears with the likes of Lee Knernaghan, Troy Cassar-Daley, Sara Storer and Casey Barnes, this festival is set in the picture perfect Gold Coast hinterland. It doesn’t matter if you were born and raised in the bush or call yourself a concrete cowboy, it’s a country music lovers' heaven, with a constant stream of country bangers from 11.300am. The music may be the main event but there will be food trucks and market stalls providing endless entertainment and fuel for the perfect family day out. You can purchase your tickets here.
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BIGSOUND
BIGSOUND? More like HUGESOUND, with over 120 artists performing at 14 different venues (all within walking distance of each other) playing music from just about every genre known to man, and over 170 conference speakers. For four days you’ll wish you could be in two places at once with all the jam-packed shows, talks, workshops, special events and networking parties taking place. The festival will shine a light on local Aussie artists such as Alex the Astronaut, Beddy Rays, and Squid the Kid. It’s a great place to be if you’re a muso looking to expand your knowledge or if you just have a special interest, because the conferences—led by all sorts of people such as CEOs, music producers, agents and even Amy Taylor from Amyl and The Sniffers—will cover a huge range of topics. For more info and to snag your early bird ticket, check out their website here.
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If you prefer to spend your weekends out of town, check out these incredible beach houses around SEQ.
Image credit: Urban List | Supplied