How to have a hella Bay Area summer
BottleRock Napa Valley
Memorial Day weekend will once again be marked with musical and culinary excellence as BottleRock Napa Valley gets underway in Wine Country. The three-day tradition, set for May 23-25, plans to welcome East Bay rockers Green Day, pop artist Justin Timberlake and singer-songwriter Noah Kahan as headliners at Napa Valley Expo. More than 80 additional acts are slated to take the stage over the course of the festival.
— Zara Irshad
'Co-Founders'
Since tech companies controlling our brains got started in garages, accelerators and hacker houses in our backyard, the Bay Area is the perfect place for new theater that explores the broader social ramifications of the industry: When you start up, who or what gets left behind? Enter 'Co-Founders,' a hip-hop musical written by locals Ryan Nicole Austin, Beau Lewis and Adesha Adefela making its world premiere at American Conservatory Theater's Strand Theater on May 29. The production runs through July 6.
Ilana DeBare discusses 'Shaken Free'
To hell and back. So travels the protagonist of 'Shaken Free,' the sequel to Oakland author Ilana DeBare's offbeat 2023 debut novel 'Shaken Loose,' which followed the high-temperature challenges facing a Bay Area woman who finds herself in the underworld. Along with San Francisco writer Audrey Ferber, she plans to talk about her protagonist's not necessarily eternal damnation when Green Apple Books hosts her book launch on June 4.
— Kevin Canfield
David Nayfeld discusses 'Dad, What's for Dinner?'
David Nayfeld's new cookbook offers numerous answers to the question asked in its title. On June 5, the chef and co-owner of Che Fico in San Francisco comes to the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco to discuss 'Dad, What's for Dinner?' (written with Joshua David Stein; foreword by Gwyneth Paltrow). His kid-centric collection of recipes includes the Best Fricking Meatloaf in the World. It's not bragging if you can back it up.
— Kevin Canfield
SoSF
A new Pride Month celebration is hitting San Francisco's Pier 80 this summer. Oakland R&B star Kehlani, 'Nasty' singer Tinashe and Grammy history-making trans pop artist Kim Petras are set to headline the event, dubbed SoSF. It is set to take place June 28, a day before the city's official Pride Parade, with a portion of proceeds benefiting the nonprofit organization Lyric Center for LGBTQ+ Youth.
— Zara Irshad
Outside Lands
San Francisco's biggest musical tradition is returning to Golden Gate Park on Aug. 8-10, for its 17th edition. This year, rappers Doja Cat and Tyler, the Creator and alternative folk singer Hozier are slated to headline Outside Lands, which is also set to offer attendees unique experiences such as on-site weddings, a performance area dedicated to LGBTQ communities and more.
— Zara Irshad
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CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
San Francisco neighbors fed up as 3 straight weekends of concerts wrap up at Golden Gate Park
Three weekends. Three massive concerts. Tens of thousands of fans packing Golden Gate Park. From Dead & Company's concert series to the three-day Outside Lands festival, and now, country star Zach Bryan headlining the Polo Field on Friday night, San Francisco has been a music capital this month. The concerts brought a big economic boost for businesses across the city, but for some neighbors living near the park, it's been three weekends of frustration. "The biggest challenge for me has been parking," said Franco Fortin, who lives about a block from the Polo Field. "I do not have a garage or a driveway spot. So I have to street park." Fortin said last Saturday, during Outside Lands, he drove out around noon. When he returned, he couldn't find parking for 30 minutes and eventually parked his car 12 blocks away from home. Neighbors said traffic, parking headaches, and noise have become routine whenever a major event takes over Golden Gate Park. On the city's 311 website, complaints poured in over the last two weekends. Residents reported blocked driveways, trash, urine bottles, and plenty of noise. Some of the comments were explicit: "Shut that ******* noise off. They just don't ******* care." Another person wrote: "Take your Outside ******* Lands and go **** yourselves. This is a residential neighborhood." Not everyone was completely against the shows. But even big music fans admit they're relieved the streak is over. "Three long weekends and I'm glad it's finally over," said neighbor Spencer Miller. Others turned the chaos into an opportunity. Some rented out driveway spots for cash. Two middle schoolers even set up a stand to sell homemade cookies and brownies to concert-goers. "A long time ago, we saw our neighbors doing it. So we decided to do it. And then we made money, so we kept doing it," said 14-year-old Nicholas Sweeney. Despite the inconvenience, Fortin says the concerts have been good for the city's economy, and local businesses in particular. He hopes San Francisco comes up with a plan to help residents next summer, such as temporary parking permits. Recreation and Park officials said they're aware of the complaints and are working with public transit agencies to ease congestion. But a long-term solution for next year's events may take time. The good news for neighbors: Friday night's Zach Bryan show is just a one-day event—unlike Outside Lands and Dead & Company's three-day runs.
Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business Insider
Alex Warren's 'Ordinary' actually is the song of the summer — but nobody wants to admit it
Where is this year's song of the summer? It's the question that's haunted road trippers and pool partiers for months now. But like so many low-stakes mysteries, the answer has been hiding in plain sight (or, in this case, earshot) all along. If we're going with cold, hard facts — Billboard chart data — there's one song that's dominated the airwaves as the weather has warmed. It's just that a soaring love ballad a 24-year-old TikToker wrote about his wife is not exactly the ideal soundtrack for your day at the beach. Released in February, Alex Warren's "Ordinary" took a few months to take off, becoming a bona fide commercial juggernaut by June, when it ascended to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's remained atop the all-genre chart for nine weeks so far, and continues to dominate Billboard's Songs of the Summer chart, where it hasn't budged from its No. 1 position since Memorial Day. Though it makes every attempt to sound momentous, "Ordinary" is a love song that's true to its name. Dedicated to Warren's wife, Kouvr Annon, the song uses vaguely spiritual lyrics to describe their connection. His vocals backed by hymnal echoes and a pounding drum line, Warren insists "the angels up in the clouds are jealous" of his marital bliss and compares his wife to a sanctuary, a vineyard, and a sculptor. If the song's theme of divine love wasn't clear enough, the couple also costars in the music video, and Warren later released a "wedding version" of the song paired with footage from their real-life nuptials. That the song is generically gooey has worked to its advantage in the airplay department. "Ordinary" owes much of its longevity to companies like iHeartMedia, America's biggest radio network, which allocates tens of thousands of spins to the song each week. In its most recent week atop the Hot 100, "Ordinary" tallied over 73 million radio airplay audience impressions, according to Billboard, compared to only 12.4 million streams and 6,000 copies sold. The song's lack of specificity also makes it a broadly appealing soundtrack for lovey-dovey moments on TikTok, where both versions of "Ordinary" have been used in millions of videos with billions of cumulative views. Annon's own uses of the song, usually featuring sweet moments with Warren, frequently collect over 1 million likes. Please help BI improve our Business, Tech, and Innovation coverage by sharing a bit about your role — it will help us tailor content that matters most to people like you. Continue By providing this information, you agree that Business Insider may use this data to improve your site experience and for targeted advertising. By continuing you agree that you accept the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . Call it the home court advantage: As a former YouTuber who joined Hype House, a flashy collective for big-name TikTokers, in 2020, Warren learned and then perfected the art of getting engagement. He and Annon briefly lived in the Los Angeles mansion together, constantly creating content, orchestrating David Dobrik-style pranks, and sharing glimpses of their lives together; Warren described the experience as "college, but for social media." "It helped me learn how to create content that resonates with an audience and can captivate people," he told Variety. Warren's self-conscious positioning as America's top new "wife guy" offers the media a tidy narrative to push while reporting on the song's success — and helps cement "Ordinary" as a favorite song choice for romantic montages and relationship content across the internet. But the differential between the song's commercial utility and its artistic value has perplexed critics and fans alike. "Genuinely WHO is listening to this," reads a recent tweet with over 27,000 likes. Even r/popheads, a Reddit community for recreational pop scholars whose self-appointed mission is to take the merits of the genre seriously, is full of cold contempt for the song's dominance. "I don't think you can deeply hate the song by itself," one commenter wrote, "because it's so fucking boring." Rolling Stone's Larisha Paul coined the phrase "'The Voice' Audition Core" to characterize the musical formula that "Ordinary" follows: ideal for soundtracking a throwaway emotional moment on reality TV, but devoid of any real personality. Indeed, Warren performed the song on the "Love Is Blind" season eight reunion special, slotting easily into a generic vision of happily ever after literally accompanied by a montage of couples. genuinely WHO is listening to this — kaitlyn⋆. 𐙚 ˚ (@kateawaycar) August 4, 2025 Still, there's no denying that "Ordinary" is the summer's defining hit. Remaining atop the Hot 100 for over two months is no small feat, and even as late-season challengers have emerged — most recently in the form of a fictional K-pop group from a Netflix film — there isn't enough time before the autumnal equinox for another song to challenge Warren's reign. It's just a shame that many excellent summertime jams actually have been released this year, they just lacked the radio push or market power to challenge "Ordinary" at the top of the charts. Addison Rae is Warren's fellow former TikToker-turned-singer, but the similarities end there; her cool-girl collaborators and creative curiosity resulted in a debut album, "Addison," that toes the line between nostalgic and eccentric. (The appropriately named "Summer Forever" is a standout.) Lorde's latest album, "Virgin," includes gems like "Shapeshifter" and "Favorite Daughter," which wrap arresting lyrics in melodic, highly accessible packages, the ghost of last year's " Brat summer" hovering on the margins. Care for something a little less personal, a little more irreverent? Tinashe and Disco Lines have you covered with the freshly remixed "No Broke Boys." And forget song of the summer, Haim's "Relationships" may be the song of the year. Danielle Haim and her sisters manage to spin the agony of indecision into flippant, funky magic. As the season winds down, a new Taylor Swift album draws closer, and the charts begin to change shape, may "Ordinary" serve as a reminder that summer trends may disappoint or underwhelm — but they never last forever.
Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business Insider
Alex Warren's 'Ordinary' actually is the song of the summer, but nobody wants to admit it
Where is this year's song of the summer? It's the question that's haunted road trippers and pool partiers for months now. But like so many low-stakes mysteries, the answer has been hiding in plain sight (or, in this case, earshot) all along. If we're going with cold, hard facts — Billboard chart data — there's one song that's dominated the airwaves as the weather has warmed. It's just that a soaring love ballad a 24-year-old TikToker wrote about his wife is not exactly the ideal soundtrack for your day at the beach. Released in February, Alex Warren's "Ordinary" took a few months to take off, becoming a bona fide commercial juggernaut by June, when it ascended to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's remained atop the all-genre chart for nine weeks so far, and continues to dominate Billboard's Songs of the Summer chart, where it hasn't budged from its No. 1 position since Memorial Day. Though it makes every attempt to sound momentous, "Ordinary" is a love song that's true to its name. Dedicated to Warren's wife, Kouvr Annon, the song uses vaguely spiritual lyrics to describe their connection. His vocals backed by hymnal echoes and a pounding drum line, Warren insists "the angels up in the clouds are jealous" of his marital bliss and compares his wife to a sanctuary, a vineyard, and a sculptor. If the song's theme of divine love wasn't clear enough, the couple also costars in the music video, and Warren later released a "wedding version" of the song paired with footage from their real-life nuptials. That the song is generically gooey has worked to its advantage in the airplay department. "Ordinary" owes much of its longevity to companies like iHeartMedia, America's biggest radio network, which allocates tens of thousands of spins to the song each week. In its most recent week atop the Hot 100, "Ordinary" tallied over 73 million radio airplay audience impressions, according to Billboard, compared to only 12.4 million streams and 6,000 copies sold. The song's lack of specificity also makes it a broadly appealing soundtrack for lovey-dovey moments on TikTok, where both versions of "Ordinary" have been used in millions of videos with billions of cumulative views. Annon's own uses of the song, usually featuring sweet moments with Warren, frequently collect over 1 million likes. Call it the home court advantage: As a former YouTuber who joined Hype House, a flashy collective for big-name TikTokers, in 2020, Warren learned and then perfected the art of getting engagement. He and Annon briefly lived in the Los Angeles mansion together, constantly creating content, orchestrating David Dobrik-style pranks, and sharing glimpses of their lives together; Warren described the experience as "college, but for social media." "It helped me learn how to create content that resonates with an audience and can captivate people," he told Variety. Warren's self-conscious positioning as America's top new "wife guy" offers the media a tidy narrative to push while reporting on the song's success — and helps cement "Ordinary" as a favorite song choice for romantic montages and relationship content across the internet. But the differential between the song's commercial utility and its artistic value has perplexed critics and fans alike. "Genuinely WHO is listening to this," reads a recent tweet with over 27,000 likes. Even r/popheads, a Reddit community for recreational pop scholars whose self-appointed mission is to take the merits of the genre seriously, is full of cold contempt for the song's dominance. "I don't think you can deeply hate the song by itself," one commenter wrote, "because it's so fucking boring." Rolling Stone's Larisha Paul coined the phrase "'The Voice' Audition Core" to characterize the musical formula that "Ordinary" follows: ideal for soundtracking a throwaway emotional moment on reality TV, but devoid of any real personality. Indeed, Warren performed the song on the "Love Is Blind" season eight reunion special, slotting easily into a generic vision of happily ever after literally accompanied by a montage of couples. genuinely WHO is listening to this — kaitlyn⋆. 𐙚 ˚ (@kateawaycar) August 4, 2025 Still, there's no denying that "Ordinary" is the summer's defining hit. Remaining atop the Hot 100 for over two months is no small feat, and even as late-season challengers have emerged — most recently in the form of a fictional K-pop group from a Netflix film — there isn't enough time before the autumnal equinox for another song to challenge Warren's reign. It's just a shame that many excellent summertime jams actually have been released this year, they just lacked the radio push or market power to challenge "Ordinary" at the top of the charts. Addison Rae is Warren's fellow former TikToker-turned-singer, but the similarities end there; her cool-girl collaborators and creative curiosity resulted in a debut album, "Addison," that toes the line between nostalgic and eccentric. (The appropriately named "Summer Forever" is a standout.) Lorde's latest album, "Virgin," includes gems like "Shapeshifter" and "Favorite Daughter," which wrap arresting lyrics in melodic, highly accessible packages, the ghost of last year's " Brat summer" hovering on the margins. Care for something a little less personal, a little more irreverent? Tinashe and Disco Lines have you covered with the freshly remixed "No Broke Boys." And forget song of the summer, Haim's "Relationships" may be the song of the year. Danielle Haim and her sisters manage to spin the agony of indecision into flippant, funky magic. As the season winds down, a new Taylor Swift album draws closer, and the charts begin to change shape, may "Ordinary" serve as a reminder that summer trends may disappoint or underwhelm — but they never last forever.
