It's a brand new year, Miami! And with it, comes 365 days of endless possibilities, new opportunities, and, of course — being that we are the Magic City — great live music.
While the 305's music scene had its fair share of crappy moments in 2015 — the death of Alex Omes, the fall of Grand Central and Mansion, and Stitches in general among them — there's plenty to look forward to this year.
Instead of making promises to eat less pizza, quit drinking, and finally join a gym — which are all great — your music junkies at New Times present you with a resolution you'll actually want to keep: Crash more concerts.
To get you pumped up for 2016, we've compiled Miami's ten most anticipated concerts of the upcoming year. 2016 ain't looking too bad.
19. TransAtlantic Festival. Presented by the Rhythm Foundation. Friday, April 8, 6 p.m. with Beirut, Troker, and Kazoots. Saturday, April 9, 6 p.m. with EMEFE, Psychic Mirrors, Chantil Dukart, and other acts TBA. North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; 305-672-5202; northbeachbandshell.com. Weekend passes cost $50 plus fees via eventbrite.com. Visit transatlanticfestival.com.
Experience "the sounds of the world right now" at the Rhythm Foundation's 14th-annual TransAtlantic Festival. Going down at the North Beach Bandshell, this year's music fest will bring "the brassy global beats of Santa Fe’s Beirut, the jazzy rock of Mexico’s Troker, and the funk-pop of New York City’s EMEFE to Miami." Local acts Psychic Mirrors, Kazoots, and Chantil Dukart will also join in on the two-day rager.
18. Mobb Deep. Saturday, March 12, 9 p.m. Churchill's Pub, 5501 NE Second Ave., Miami; 305-757-1807; churchillspub.com. Tickets cost $30 plus fees via holdmyticket.com. Ages 18 and up.
Mobb Deep has gone through its fair share of drama throughout the years – feuds, jail sentences, '90s-era violence, and ever-changing trends — but the Queens rap duo remains on top of its game. Back in 2014, Havoc and Prodigy celebrated the 20th anniversary of The Infamous — the album that gave the two Mobb members their rep — with the release of The Infamous Mobb Deep. The occasion sparked a tour, which brought Havoc and Prodigy to Miami's Bardot. This year, hip-hop's OG's will be spitting breaks at Churchill's as they make their 305 return.
17. Maroon 5 with Tove Lo and R. City. Wednesday, September 7, 6:30 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $27.50 to $123 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
Maroon 5's music may have taken a different path since Songs About Jane, but truth is, Adam Levine and his crew can — and will — sell out arenas. But there's good news for fans who prefer "Sunday Morning" over "Sugar" — it's been rumored that the band's latest album (set to drop sometime this year) will take on a more classic route. "I think all of us want to make a more traditional record next," M5 guitarist James Valentine said in a Live Nation Q&A Facebook chat. "What do I mean by that? More like the way we made Songs About Jane, just sitting in a room with our instruments and slugging it out."
16. Weezer & Panic! at the Disco's Summer Tour 2016 with Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. Tuesday, June 14, 7 p.m. Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-358-7550; bayfrontparkmiami.com (http://www.bayfrontparkmiami.com). Tickets cost $35.70 to $71.70 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
Is your pop-punk heart fluttering with excitement? Well, it should be. Weezer and Panic! At the Disco will be embarking on a co-headlining summer tour, and the two acts are coming to Miami in June. The even more exciting news is that both bands will be hitting the road with new music. Weezer's tenth studio album (and fourth self-titled production), is set to be released April 1, and Panic!'s latest Death of a Bachelor dropped in January. That gives you more than enough time to learn all the lyrics and scream them at the top of your lungs.
15. Modest Mouse & Brand New. Friday, July 8, 6 p.m. Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-358-7550; bayfrontparkmiami.com. Tickets cost $35.95 to $59.95 plus fees via livenation.com.
The last time Modest Mouse played Miami, Isaac Brock and his crew sold out the Fillmore Miami Beach. As we saw for ourselves, "there were no fancy lighting rigs. Or LED screens. Or lasers. Just a band and a black, stripped-down stage, occasionally filled with a red glow, soaked in blue light, flooded by flashing white." Expect nothing less this July when the indie rockers hit up Bayfront Park with Long Island emo heroes, Brand New.
14. Florence + the Machine's How Beautiful Tour. Friday, May 13, 6:30 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $27.50 to $82 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
Florence + the Machine is no stranger to the Magic City. From opening for U2 during their 2011 360° Tour at Sun Life Stadium to playing the carpet at Bardot, Ms. Welch is finally getting the major headlining arena tour she deserves. And we can't hardly wait for her show at the AAA.
13. New Order. Wednesday, March 23, 8:30 p.m. The Fillmore Miami Beach, 1700 Washington Ave., Miami Beach; 305-673-7300; fillmoremb.com. Tickets cost $68.50 to $86.50 plus fees via livenation.com.
The closest Miami has gotten to New Order in the past several years was last April when Peter Hook played Grand Central with his band, the Light. But now, the Magic City will be getting a full dose of iconic new wave — minus Hook — when the English dance-rock band takes over the Fillmore. With a new LP underway, Music Complete, the legendary collective will surely sell out the Miami Beach concert hall, so be sure to get your hands on a pair of tickets before disappear.
12. Pearl Jam. Friday, April 8, 8 p.m. BB&T Center, 1 Panther Pkwy., Sunrise; 954-835-8000; thebbtcenter.com; and Saturday, April 9, 8 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $67 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
The only way this concert could get better is if Eddie Vedder would hit up Mac's Club Deuce, run into Sean "Birdman" Gould, and record another round of drunken Birdman Sessions in his studio in Little Haiti. Given that the rockstar never responded to a New Times request for comment about that whole incident, the latter is unlikely. But hey, at least South Florida will get a double dose of Pearl Jam.
11. Iggy Pop's Post Pop Depression Tour. Tuesday, April 19, 8 p.m. The Fillmore Miami Beach, 1700 Washington Ave., Miami Beach; 305-673-7300; fillmoremb.com. Tickets cost $64.50 to $105 plus fees via livenation.com.
Sure, you may have spotted him cruising around town in his convertible or hitting up local hot spots like Sweat Records, but chances are you can't remember the last time you saw Iggy Pop live on stage — until now. The retired rockstar has collaborated with Queens of the Stone Age’s Joshua Homme for his 17th production, Post Pop Depression. With the album set to drop in March, Iggy will be hitting up the Fillmore in April. Joining the rock legend on his tour (and only Florida show) is a supergroup of sorts, made up of fellow Stone Agers Dean Fertita and Troy Van Leeuwen, as well as the Arctic Monkey’s drummer Matt Helders and guitar vet Matt Sweeney.
10. Rihanna's
Although Rihanna hasn't released an album since 2012's Unapologetic, fans have nothing but love for the Good Girl Gone Bad. In July 2015, the Recording Industry Association of America announced that Rihanna was the first artist to surpass more than 100 million Gold and Platinum song certifications. Proving she has her fans under her spell, the singer will embark on her latest
9. Selena Gomez. Saturday, June 11, 7:30 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $36.50 to $96.50 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
From dropping her sophomore solo album, Revival — in which the singer poses nearly naked as a way of taking control of all the haters and body
8. Ellie Goulding's Delirium World Tour. Friday, June 3, 7 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $31.75 to $56.25 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
Thanks to being featured in the soundtrack to the movie adaptation of the hit novel, Fifty Shades of Grey, Ellie Goulding's "Love Me like You Do" became one of her most successful songs to date, earning the singer two 2015 Grammy Award nominations. This year, Goulding will take her 2015 momentum to Miami when the British superstar takes over the AAA in June.
7. Madonna's Rebel Hearts Tour. Saturday and Sunday, January 23 and 24, 8 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $40 to $355 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
There will only ever be one Madonna, and she damn well knows it. So much so, the 57-year-old bad girl reminded the entire world — as if we needed a reminder — of her super pop star status with her 2015 track, "Bitch I'm Madonna." While her tenth headlining tour was scheduled to kick off in Miami in August, it was rescheduled to January. "As my fans already know, the show has to be perfect,” she explained in a statement. "Assembling all the elements will require more time than we realized. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause my fans. I can promise you this show will be worth the wait. Can't wait to share it with all my Rebel Hearts out there."
6. Justin Bieber's Purpose World Tour. Saturday and Sunday, July 2 and 3, 6:30 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $50.50 to $126 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
Justin Bieber has certainly matured since being arrested in Miami Beach on charges of drag racing and drunk driving.
5. Ultra Music Festival with Afrojack, Armin van Buuren, Avicii, Carl Cox, David Guetta, Dubfire, Eric Prydz, Hardwell, Jamie Jones, Kaskade, and others. Friday to Sunday, March 18 to 20. Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-358-7550; bayfrontparkmiami.com. Tickets cost $324.95 to $1,249.95 plus fees via ultramusicfestival.com. Ages 18 and up.
Three days of non-stop
4. The Cure with the Twilight Sad. Sunday and Monday, June 6 and 7, 6 p.m. Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-358-7550; bayfrontparkmiami.com. Tickets cost $25 to $125 plus fees via livenation.com.
Robert Smith once told Reuters he finds it "so pitiful when 'goth' is still tagged onto the name the Cure." But, like it or not, when most people think goth rock, they think the Cure. And for the first time in eight years, Smith — the only remaining member of the group — and his band will be serenading "Lovesong[s]" to all their Florida fans for two-nights straight.
3. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: The River Tour. Tuesday, February 16, 7:30 p.m. BB&T Center, 1 Panther Pkwy., Sunrise; 954-835-8000; thebbtcenter.com. Tickets cost $55 to $150 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
The Boss is back in town! In honor of the 35th anniversary of his fifth studio album, The River, and celebratory release of The Ties That Bind: The River Collection — which includes 52 tracks on four CDs with unreleased material, along with four hours of never-before-seen video — Bruce Springsteen will be returning to South Florida. Performing songs from The River in its entirety, this will be one show you don't want to miss.
2. III Points
While the 2016 dates for III Points have yet to be announced, as one of Miami's homegrown music, technology, and art festivals, we can hardly wait to see what it has in store for us this year. But judging by previous years — which have brought acts like Neon Indian, Nicolas Jaar, and Panda Bear to Wynwood — we're sure the 2016 edition will be better than ever.
1. Adele. Tuesday and Wednesday, October 25 and 26, 7:30 p.m. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 786-777-1000; aaarena.com. Tickets cost $36.95 to $146.50 plus fees via ticketmaster.com.
With the voice of an angel and an army of loyal fans, Adele can do no wrong. After a three-year hiatus, the singer took the interwebs by storm in October with the release of her music video for “Hello,” which received 27.7 million views on YouTube within its first 24 hours. The song later debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, becoming the first song in the United States to sell at least 1 million downloads in a week. Her third studio album, 25, finally dropped in late November, selling 3.38 million copies in its first week in the United States. Now, the 27-year-old will embark on a North American tour, which will bring her to the Magic City for two nights in October.
