Holiday gift ideas: Get tickets to these Upstate NY concerts coming in 2025

Looking for holiday gift ideas? How about concert tickets?
That’s right, tell someone you love them with the gift of live music and consider getting them tickets to see their favorite artists. Major concerts coming to Upstate New York in 2025 include rock legends Billy Joel & Sting and Metallica in Syracuse, country superstar Blake Shelton in Albany, R&B greats Mary J. Blige with Ne-Yo & Mario in Buffalo, and Rod Stewart’s farewell tour in Saratoga Springs.
Some shows are already sold out or near-sellouts, so check resellers like VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork or SeatGeek for tickets.
Here are the biggest concerts coming to Upstate New York next year and where to find tickets:
Goo Goo Dolls
Jan. 4 at Turning Stone Event Center, Verona
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Goo Goo Dolls, the rock band behind ‘90s hits like “Iris,” “Slide” and “Name,” will also tour with Dashboard Confessional in the summer with concerts in Saratoga Springs (July 30) and Buffalo (Aug. 9).
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Lou Gramm
Feb. 8 at Palace Theatre, Albany
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Gramm, the original voice of Foreigner, is doing “One Last Look Tour” after finally being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (Foreigner, which doesn’t have any original members in its touring group, is set to perform at the Erie County Fair on Aug. 7.)
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Big Head Todd & The Monsters
Feb. 13 at Empire Live, Albany
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
The acclaimed alternative rock band is celebrating its 40th anniversary.
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Dru Hill
Feb. 14 at del Lago Resort & Casino, Waterloo
Tickets: Del Lago
Make a Valentine’s date with Dru Hill, the reunited R&B group that launched Sisqo to superstardom.
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Jason Isbell
Feb. 16 at State Theatre, Ithaca
Tickets: Tixr
Isbell is a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter from Alabama known for his work as a solo artist, with his backing band The 400 Unit, and previously with Drive-By Truckers. His most popular songs include “Cover Me Up,” “If It Takes a Lifetime,” and “If We Were Vampires,” plus tunes heard in “A Star is Born,” “The Affair” and “Yellowstone.”
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Cody Johnson with Ashley McBryde and Drew Baldridge
Feb. 21 at Keybank Center, Buffalo
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Johnson is a country singer known for hits “Til You Can’t,” “Dear Rodeo” (feat. Reba McEntire) and “I’m Gonna Love You” (with Carrie Underwood).
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Blake Shelton with Craig Morgan, Deana Carter, Trace Adkins
March 8 at MVP Arena, Albany
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork, SeatGeek
Shelton, a country superstar and former judge on “The Voice,” is making just one Upstate New York stop on his star-studded “Heroes & Friends” tour.
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Mary J. Blige with Ne-Yo and Mario
March 22 at KeyBank Center, Buffalo
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
The Queen of R&B is joined by 2000s R&B singers Ne-Yo (”Closer,” “So Sick”) and Mario (”Let Me Love You”).
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Jose Gonzalez
March 29 at State Theatre, Ithaca
Tickets: Tixr
The multilingual singer-songwriter is best known for his cover of “Heartbeats” (The Knife) and the soundtrack to Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.”
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Heart with Cheap Trick
March 31 at KeyBank Center, Buffalo
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Heart, led by sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson, is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group known for songs “Alone,” “Barracuda,” “Crazy on You,” “Magic Man,” “These Dreams” and “All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You.”
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Disturbed with Daughtry, Nonpoint
April 4 at KeyBank Center, Buffalo
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Disturbed is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its breakout hit “Down With the Sickness.”
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Billy Joel & Sting
April 11 at JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork, SeatGeek
Joel and Sting are both Rock and Roll Hall of Famers who dominated the 1970s and ‘80s with hits like “Piano Man,” “Uptown Girl,” “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” “Every Breath You Take,” “Desert Rose” and “Roxanne.” It will be Sting’s first concert in the Dome since performing with The Police in 1982 and 1984, while Joel will be making his record eighth appearance.
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Bright Eyes with Cursive
April 11 at RiverWorks, Buffalo
Tickets: TicketWeb, VividSeats, StubHub
An ideal show for the emo/indie/”The O.C.” fan in your life.
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Metallica with Pantera, Suicidal Tendencies
April 19 at JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork, SeatGeek
Metallica, the iconic metal band behind “Enter Sandman,” “Until It Sleeps,” “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” and “Master of Puppets,” will perform in the former Carrier Dome for the first time.
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Melissa Etheridge & Joss Stone
April 29 at Palace Theatre, Albany
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
Etheridge and Stone will also perform together April 23 in Niagara Falls, Ontario, while the “Come to My Window” singer will do a solo show April 4 at del Lago Resort & Casino in Waterloo.
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Fontaines D.C.
May 13 at Empire Live, Albany
Tickets: Ticketmaster, VividSeats, StubHub
The Grammy-nominated Irish post-punk band’s concert is already sold out, so you’ll have to buy from resellers.
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Kane Brown
May 15 at MVP Arena, Albany (TICKETS)
May 22-23 at CMAC, Canandaigua (TICKETS)
The ACM Awards-winning singer behind country hits like “Miles On It,” “What Ifs,” “Heaven,” “Good As You,” “One Thing Right” (with Marshmello), “Like I Love Country Music,” and “Thank God” (with his wife Katelyn Brown), will release his next album in January.
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Thomas Rhett with Tucker Wetmore
June 12 at Broadview Stage at SPAC, Saratoga Springs (TICKETS)
Aug. 7 at Darien Lake Amphitheater, Darien Center (TICKETS)
Aug. 21 at Empower FCU Amphitheater, Syracuse (TICKETS)
Rhett, the country star known for songs like “Die a Happy Man,” “Make Me Wanna,” and “Look What God Gave Her,” recently teamed up with Teddy Swims for a new version of “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Woman.”
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Waxahatchee
June 21 at Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards, LaFayette
Tickets: Tixr.com
Waxahatchee, an indie rock/folk/Americana music project from singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield, recently received its first Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album with 2024’s “Tigers Blood.”
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“Weird Al” Yankovic
July 11 at Darien Lake Amphitheater, Darien Center (TICKETS)
July 13 at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel (TICKETS)
July 17 at Broadview Stage at SPAC, Saratoga Springs (TICKETS)
The comedy musician behind accordion-fueled parodies “Eat It” (Michael Jackson’s “Beat It”), “Amish Paradise” (Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise”), and “White & Nerdy” (Chamillionaire’s “Ridin’ Dirty”) is planning to perform his greatest hits along with fan favorites and live rarities, complete with multiple costume changes and an eight-piece backing ensemble that includes his original band.
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Rod Stewart with Cheap Trick
July 15 at Broadview Stage at SPAC, Saratoga Springs
Tickets: Live Nation, VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork, SeatGeek
Stewart, a two-time member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, will perform at the historic Saratoga Performing Arts Center as part of his farewell tour.
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Papa Roach & Rise Against with Underoath
Sept. 11 at Empower FCU Amphitheater, Syracuse
Tickets: Live Nation, VividSeats, StubHub
Papa Roach, led by singer Jacoby Shaddix, is a rock/nu metal band known for hits “Last Resort,” “Scars” and the Grammy-nominated “Broken Home.” Rise Against is a punk rock band that will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of its breakout hit, “Swing Life Away.”
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