Herbie Hancock

It’s been a tough year for some of the nation’s most beloved venues. The onset of the pandemic and subsequent quarantine meant staying away from massive gatherings like crowds at The Forum or the Staples Center was the safe choice, with plenty of canceled tours in the wake, and seeing those musical monuments sit empty has been hard on everyone. Now, there’s light on the horizon, as one of LA’s biggest and best arenas is ready to re-open its doors.

That’s right, the Hollywood Bowl has officially announced their 2021 lineup, and it includes some surprising and unexpected names. For instance, I highly doubt most Stripped diehards had not one but two nights of Christina Aguilera headlining the bowl on their 2021 bingo card, but that’s what we’ve got coming up in July. There’s also big appearances from Kamasi Washington, Earl Sweatshirt, H.E.R., Brittany Howard, Jamila Woods, Herbie Hancock, and a whole lot more.

The entire summer calendar announcement is included below, even the LA Phil dates, so please check out the venue’s website for more information on those bookings. Normally we don’t cover a lot of the classical music performances, but after a year of no concerts, I have a feeling those nights will be more populated than ever.

Check out the full listing below:

05/15 —Dudamel and the LA Phil
05/17 — Pink: All I Know So Far screening
05/22 — Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev with Dudamel (LA Phil)
06/12 — Thundercat + Flying Lotus
06/26 — La Santa Cecilia
07/03 — July 4th Fireworks Spectacular + Kool & The Gang
07/04 — July 4th Fireworks Spectacular + Kool & The Gang
07/15 — Peter And The Wolf with Viola Davis & Dudamel (LA Phil)
07/16 — Christina Aguilera (LA Phil)
07/17 — Christina Aguilera (LA Phil)
07/18 — KCRW’s World Festival: Kamasi Washington + Earl Sweatshirt
07/20 — Tianyi Lu Conducts Pictures At An Exhibition (LA Phil)
07/22 — Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky (LA Phil)
07/24 — Ledisi Sings Nina Simone (LA Phil)
07/27 — Mozart and Mendelssohn with Ruth Reinhardt (LA Phil)
07/30 — Cynthia Erivo (LA Phil)
07/31 — The Princess Bride in Concert (LA Phil)
08/01 — KCRW’s World Festival: Reggae Night XIX, Ziggy Marley, Wailing Souls
08/05 — Schumann & Schumann (LA Phil)
08/06 — Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks (LA Phil, USC Trojan Marching Band)
08/07 — Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks (LA Phil, USC Trojan Marching Band)
08/08 — Dave Koz & Friends Summer Horns Tower of Power
08/10 — Dudamel Conducts Gershwin (LA Phil)
08/12 — Dudamel Conducts the “New World” (LA Phil)
08/13 — H.E.R. With The LA Phil
08/14 — H.E.R. With The LA Phil
08/15 — Blame It On Rio! with Sergio Mendes and carnival dancers
08/17 — Dudamel Leads Elgar and Grieg (LA Phil)
08/19 — Dudamel Conducts Beethoven & Falla (LA Phil)
08/21 — Sing-A-Long Sound Of Music
08/24 — Dudamel Leads Márquez and Tchaikovsky (LA Phil)
08/26 — Piazzolla & Tchaikovsky with Dudamel (LA Phil)
08/27 — Carlos Vives (LA Phil)
08/28 — Carlos Vives (LA Phil)
08/31 — Ray Chen Plays Mendelssohn
09/02 — Gershwin and Bonds (LA Phil)
09/03 — Maestro of the Movies: John Williams + David Newman conduct the LA Phil)
09/04 — Maestro of the Movies: John Williams + David Newman conduct the LA Phil)
09/05 — Maestro of the Movies: John Williams + David Newman conduct the LA Phil)
09/09 — Beethoven & Schumann (LA Phil)
09/10 — Black Panther in Concert (LA Phil)
09/11 — Black Panther in Concert (LA Phil)
09/12 — Black Panther in Concert (LA Phil)
09/14 — Yo-Yo Ma | The Bach Project
09/17 — Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince In Concert
09/18 — KCRW’s World Festival: Brittany Howard, Jamila Woods, Georgia Anne Muldrow
09/25 — James Blake (Hollywood Bowl Orchestra)
09/26 — Herbie Hancock
09/28 — Mozart Under The Stars With Dudamel (LA Phil)