Outside Lands celebrates its 18th year with a sold-out, star-studded three-day festival.
San Francisco’s music festival brought over 200,000 people, with roughly 75,000 attendees per day, to Golden Gate Park. Headlining this year's event were British singer-songwriter and actress Charli XCX, alum performer and American rock band The Strokes, and Australian alternative dance group Rüfüs Du Sol.
“I'm very excited to be here," 12-year attendee Bailey Meyer said. “There's no festival like it.”
For die-hard fans like Meyer and her husband Steve, who's attended the festival for eight years and joined Outside Lands’ Clean Vibes volunteer clean-up program this year, what keeps them coming back is the music, atmosphere, their love for San Francisco, and being able to sleep in their own bed once the day is over.
“I work at a school, so this is kind of like everything that finishes off the summer for me," said Steve Meyer, who was excited to see ALLEYCVT.
First-time attendee Stefanie LaMarca came from Napa with her husband and oldest kid to the festival to see Modest Mouse and family-favorite Geese.
She said she enjoyed how spread out the stages were and noted it was an upgrade from attending Napa Valley's BottleRock festival.
“It's a beautiful spot and incredible music,” LaMarca said. “It feels a little bit more of a locals vibe. BottleRock seems like people from all over the place come, but here it just feels really San Francisco.”
Left to Right: Steve Meyer, Bailey Meyer, and Stefanie LaMarca attend Outside Lands 2026 in Golden Gate Park. | Anne Marie Kristoff/Ingleside Light
Performers on Outside Lands multi-day lineup included Turnstile, Ethel Cain, Djo, Pinkpantheress, sibling duo Malcom Todd and Audry Hobert, who performed separately, Empire of the Sun, and Death Cab for Cutie, among other stand-out sets.
It was also a big year for the Bay with six Bay Area natives performing across the seven stages, including The Story So Far, Lane 8, Vertigo, and bad juuju.
Los Angeles-based and Bay Area native Vanessa Hernández, who goes by the stage name NEZZA, said that performing at Outside Lands was dream number one for her during her Friday show on the Twin Peaks stage, especially as an independent artist and as a “Bay kid” whose dream was to be a pop star.
For her parents, Marisol Mendez and Hernan Hernandez, who the artist dedicated a surprise salsa number at the festival to in honor of their love story and heritage, seeing their daughter perform at Outside Lands was a moment like no other.
“Every time that she's on the stage it's like the first time for me,” Mendez said. “I'm always so emotional to see her up there after she's struggled so much. She doesn't give up.”
Bay Area artists NEZZA, The Story So Far and The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus perform at stages Twin Peaks, Sutro and Lands End at Outside Lands. | Anne Marie Kristoff/Ingleside Light
The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus also took to the stage on Sunday, starting the festivities on the Lands End platform. The group, with over 250 members, debuted at the festival last year alongside New Orleans rapper and singer Big Freedia.
Mitch Galli, who's sung for the group for 11 years and is the director of their Reaching Youth Through Music program, told the Ingleside Light before Sunday's show that 100 singers would perform a high-energy set alongside their dance troupe, a live band, and saxophonist Justin Ward.
“In the short stint that I've been with the chorus, it's amazing to see the visibility that we continue to grow and the talent we continue to bring into this chorus over the last few years, and with that has come some really amazing, so exciting, opportunities like this project,” Galli said.
Activations, performers, and art installations at Outside Lands 2026 in Golden Gate Park. | Anne Marie Kristoff/Ingleside Light
Though it's commonly known as a music festival, Outside Lands’ pop-ups were in full swing again this year with activations like Outsider Art by Monster Energy, PREgame by Pepsi® Prebiotic Cola, Creator Impact Zone presented by Be The People, and Wandergrounds by Toyota.
Working their sixth year at the festival was the neighborhood’s very own Youth Art Exchange. The arts nonprofit has two locations, one in the Cayuga Terrace neighborhood and the other in the Mission.
At their two-booth setup, attendees participated in mural painting, button-creating and trading, and phone charm keychain making.
Youth Art Exchange Executive Director Raffaella Falchi-Macias and Center Director KT Seibert with volunteers Kate and Munroe Simpson. | Anne Marie Kristoff/Ingleside Light
“It's such a fun event for us to participate in,” YAX Executive Director Raffaella Falchi-Macias said. “It's their 18th year here, and it is corporate, it is for-profit, so to be able to be supported by them, by Outside Lands and their foundation arm, feels really good.”
