Austin's free summer music fest is growing; Hot Summer Nights plans largest-ever venue lineup
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin is known for its live music scene, but it's also a city where people often struggle with affordability. An annual summer music festival aims to relieve some of that pressure for music venues, artists, and concert-goers alike.
Hot Summer Nights will be back this year on July 24–26. It's an admission-free music festival in the Red River Cultural District.
The fest was founded by the district in 2017, 'in an effort to provide additional revenue to district members, as well as paid opportunities for musicians and artists in the traditionally slower summer months,' according to the Red River Cultural District's website.
'Hot Summer Nights' crucial for downtown bars during summer slump
The district announced this week that the 2025 fest will see its largest venue lineup ever, featuring Red River staples like Stubb's, Mohawk and others, as well as Hot Summer Nights newcomers like Kingdom, Marlow and The Side Bar.
Kingdom, a nightclub on East 7th Street, is excited to join the festival's docket.
'I think that the Cultural District is such a huge proponent for the district, for venues in general,' Justin Boyd, a partner and the CFO at Kingdom said. 'We've seen progress in so many areas of just awareness, whether it's through APD, whether it's through just voicing the concerns of venue owners for rising costs to, you know, from rents to insurance policies and everything in between. So they've just done a great job of helping the businesses get together and, you know, really voice what's needed to keep live music alive in Austin, and probably, you know, one of the most important music districts in the city.'
Boyd said Kingdom sees a dip in attendance and sales in the summertime and the middle of the winter, so the Red River Cultural District's free summer and winter festivals are an 'important value add for venues to be able to get foot traffic, and get heavily attended shows during what are normally slower times.'
Hot Summer Nights' winter counterpart is called Free Week, which typically happens in early January.
'Even though revenue is down, we still have rent, utilities, and insurance and you know, payroll and all the things that we have to cover,' Boyd said. 'So to be able to use a tool like this to boost the venues' sales, and, you know, essentially three days is, is a huge value. So we're, we're really excited to be a part of it.'
Boyd also noted the significance that free admission can have for attendees, saying that the cost of tickets can often either keep people from going to many shows, or keep them from shows period.
Eighteen venues will be part of the festival, and more than 150 bands and artists will perform during the three-day festival.
Kingdom is a staple in the electric and underground music scenes, and it's open until 4 a.m., offering an after-hours dance club go-to for night owls. Boyd recommended that people check out other Red River Cultural District venues, then come to Kingdom as an after-party spot.
The artist lineup isn't announced yet, but Boyd said Kingdom is in the planning phase with some very exciting local artists. He expects the headlining acts will take the stage around midnight Friday and Saturday nights.
The current lineup of local music venues set to participate in Hot Summer Nights 2025 is listed below in alphabetical order:
Barbarella
Cheer Up Charlies
Chess Club
Elysium
Empire Control Room & Garage
Flamingo Cantina
Feels So Good (FSG)
Kingdom
Liberty Lunch
Marlow
Mohawk
Side Bar
Stubb's Bar-B-Q
Swan Dive
The 13th Floor
Valhalla
Vaquero Taquero
Waterloo Park
Tickets are not required for admission, but festival organizers are asking local fans to RSVP in advance to share important event updates and support Red River.
Hot Summer Nights' music lineup will be released later this month. Details about the festival can be found online.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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