If you're not going to a big-name concert this weekend, you either don't care about music or weren't fast enough in buying your tickets. There are no fewer than seven big music events on the schedule between now and Sunday, making this one of most packed weekends in recent memory.
Below are the best options for your precious free time Thursday through Sunday. Don't like what you see? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.
Thursday, May 12
Joe Walsh and Bad Company in concert
Music from industry legends will be on tap at Gexa Energy Pavilion on Thursday when Joe Walsh, formerly of the Eagles and others, and Bad Company team up for a co-headlining concert. Expect to hear such classics as “Rocky Mountain Way" and “Life In The Fast Lane” from Walsh and “Feel Like Makin' Love” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy” from Bad Company.
Off Broadway on Flora Series: The Intergalactic Nemesis
Direct from Austin, this retro multimedia extravaganza is like nothing else out there: three actors, one foley artist, and one keyboardist perform all the voices, sound effects, and music while more than 1,000 hand-drawn, full-color, hi-res, comic-book images blast from the screen to tell this hilarious period-adventure-sci-fi-romance. The production will play at Dallas City Performance Hall through Saturday.
Friday, May 13
JMBLYA 2016
The fourth annual JMBLYA returns to Texas with a stacked lineup. Rapper Future, who had a memorable collaboration with Drake, will headline the event at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Other performers will include rap duo Rae Sremmurd, DJ and producer Carnage, rapper Kevin Gates, singer/songwriter Kehlani, South Korean rapper Keith Ape, and Canadian rapper Jazz Cartier, plus special guest, Texas’ own Post Malone.
Hall & Oates in concert with Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue
Daryl Hall and John Oates haven't released an album of any kind in 10 years, but with a back catalog as deep as theirs, new music is superfluous. You can sing along to "Rich Girl," "Private Eyes," and many more at this ampersand-heavy concert at Gexa Energy Pavilion, which also features stellar opening acts like Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue.
Rihanna in concert with Travis Scott
If it weren't for Beyoncé, Rihanna might be the most notable R&B/hip-hop singer on the planet right now. Her new album, Anti, is one of the best-selling albums of the year, an album that doesn't even include two recent huge hits, "FourFiveSeconds" and "Bitch Better Have My Money." She'll be joined at American Airlines Center — finally — by opening act Travis Scott.
Saturday, May 14
2016 HomeGrown Music and Arts Festival
Dallas’ first all-local music and arts outdoor festival is a celebration of music, art, and fun at Main Street Garden. Performers will include Ghostland Observatory, Neon Indian, Wild Child, Bright Light Social Hour, Will Johnson, Pageantry, Kaela Sinclair, Bobby Sessions, Charley Crockett, Kirk Thurmond & The Millennials, Young Mammals, and The Misteries.
Dallas Theater Center presents Centerstage 2016
Former American Idol runner-up Justin Guarini took center stage for Dallas Theater Center in its season-opening production, Moonshine: That Hee Haw Musical, and now he's back to headline the annual fundraising event. The gala at Winspear Opera House will feature a cocktail hour, dinner, performance from Guarini and his band, and an after party with DJ Lucy Wrubel.
Dave Matthews Band in concert
You never have to wait long to see Dave Matthews Band in Dallas, as they've made an annual visit to Gexa Energy Pavilion for at least the past six years running. As they have for the past two years, they will perform two full sets of hits from their catalog, one acoustic and one electric, providing fans with the full range of their abilities.
Sunday, May 15
The Complete Works of Shakespeare: Measure For Measure
Believe it or not, we are nearing the end of Shakespeare Dallas' massive five-year series, in which it promised to present a staged reading of every single work William Shakespeare ever wrote. The 32nd in the 40-part series will be Measure for Measure, the dark comedy about aspiring nun Isabella, who is faced with an impossible choice of trading her virginity for her brother's life after her brother is sentenced to death for the crime of “fornication.” The reading will be staged twice at Hamon Hall at Winspear Opera House on May 15 and 16.
The Cure in concert with The Twilight Sad
To wrap up the music-heavy weekend, The Cure will come to American Airlines Center as part of their first major North American tour since 2008. The band will explore 37 years of Cure songs, mixing hits, rarities, favorites, and unreleased tracks in a brand-new stage production. They'll be joined by opening act The Twilight Sad.
Hall & Oates will play at Gexa Energy Pavilion on May 13.
