Bob Weir and Playa Luna Presents have revealed the daily schedules for the second-annual Dead Ahead Fest, set to take over the Moon Palace resort in Riviera Cancún January 9th–13th, 2025. This year’s festival will again see Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir lead an all-star lineup of Dead & Company bandmates and beyond.
Dead Ahead 2025 will open on Thursday, January 9th with vintage R&B pianoman Neal Francis and two sets of Oteil & Friends. The Dead & Co bassist and an assortment of Friends to be named later will perform two sets, including one celebrating the Jerry Garcia Band. On Friday, January 10th, Weir will lead his Dead Ahead band in a two-set performance. This year’s band will include Bobby, Goose guitarist Rick Mitarotonda, Sturgill Simpson, Wolf Bros bassist Don Was, and Dead & Company’s Burbridge, Jeff Chimenti, and Jay Lane. Singer-songwriters Brandi Carlile and Brittney Spencer as well as guitarist Grace Bowers will be on hand as special guests all week.
Though Saturday, January 11th will not host a Dead Ahead performance, the festival’s hump day will present a stacked lineup. After singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun gets things started, grass-curious folk band Trampled By Turtles will perform 1973’s Old & In the Way in tribute to Garcia’s all-star bluegrass band of the same name. Finally, country badass Sturgill Simpson will close out the evening with a headlining performance on the heels of his Why Not? Tour comeback.
Following a few days of supporting acts, Dead Ahead will wrap with two straight nights of two-set shows by the marquee band on Sunday, January 12th and Monday, January 13th. An announcement from the festival notes that pool parties and late-night sets will be revealed later.
All-inclusive hotel packages for Dead Ahead 2025 are on sale now via the event website. Scroll down for further details.
Bob Weir will return to Mexico January 9th–13th, 2025 for the second-annual Dead Ahead Fest. Headed for the Moon Palace resort in Riviera Cancún, former home of Dead & Company‘s Playing in the Sand, the destination festival will see the Grateful Dead guitarist lead an all-star band featuring Sturgill Simpson, Rick Mitarotonda, Brandi Carlile, and more for three nights, plus a whole lot more.
The full lineup for Weir’s Dead Ahead band includes Simpson, Carlile, Goose guitarist Rick Mitarotonda, Bob’s Wolf Bros bassist Don Was, his Dead & Co bandmates Jeff Chimenti, Oteil Burbridge, and Jay Lane, and guests singer-songwriter Brittney Spencer and guitarist Grace Browers. Interestingly, it does not include his longtime Grateful Dead bandmate Mickey Hart. In addition to three nights of Bob’s Dead Ahead band, the festival will feature performances by Sturgill, two sets of Oteil & Friends including one dedicated to Jerry Garcia Band, Trampled by Turtles performing Old & In The Way, singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun, and R&B pianist Neal Francis.
All-inclusive packages for Dead Ahead 2025 go on sale on Monday, September 23rd at 12 p.m. ET. Visit the event website for package information.
In January, Weir joined Hart, Was, Chimenti, Burbridge, and Lane along with special guests Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Mitarotonda, Margo Price, and Simpson for the inaugural Dead Ahead. The weekend also included performances by Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack, Mickey & The Miracles, who welcomed Derek Trucks and Jay Lane, Orebelo who played with Weir and Simpson, and a night of celebrations of the Jerry Garcia Band featuring sets by Oteil & Friends and Lettuce. LP Giobbi, Sierra Hull, Brittney Spencer, and Jaime Wyatt all performed additional sets.
Moon Palace Cancún will provide guests with a wide range of luxury accommodations just steps from Dead Ahead’s state-of-the-art concert venue. This oceanfront sanctuary offers magnificent rooms, gourmet all-inclusive food and drink, 24-hour room service, and activities like the luxurious AWE-Spa and a 27-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course.
In addition to daytime pool parties, curated activities throughout the resort, and nightly concerts on the beach, guests will be encouraged to enrich their weekend with exploration of the Yucatan Peninsula’s natural beauty and rich Mayan culture through various off-site adventures including diving in underground cenotes, visiting the lost capital of Chichen Itza, sailing on luxury catamarans to Isla Mujeres, and more. Find full details here.
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