KAABOO Del Mar did not lack for star power in 2015 and 2016, when the ambitious new festival’s expansive lineup featured No Doubt, The Killers, Aerosmith, Cheech & Chong, The Chainsmokers and Jimmy Buffett.
Even so, KAABOO is hoping to up the ante when the upscale music, comedy and gourmet food-and-drink extravaganza returns this fall. The all-ages festival’s third edition at the Del Mar Racetrack and adjacent fairgrounds will be held Sept. 15-17.
The list of this year’s confirmed performers includes Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Red Hot Chili Peppers (who played a rescheduled performance in San Diego on March 21), Pink, Muse, Weezer, Jane’s Addiction, David Guetta, Kesha, Ice Cube, Jason Derulo and Alanis Morissette. (The full lineup and ticket information appears below; the comedy lineup will be announced this summer.)
Jane’s Addiction currently has no other 2017 performances scheduled anywhere, while EDM-pop crossover star David Guetta has yet to disclose any other U.S. festival dates for this year. Pink and Kesha’s KAABOO slots are only the second U.S. dates announced so far for either singer in 2017.
Also confirmed to appear are Garbage, Logic, T-Pain, Michael McDonald, Andy Grammer, The Wallflowers, Pete Yorn and DJ Diesel (as basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal is known when he’s spinning records). They will perform on four outdoor and two indoor stages, one of which will be devoted exclusively to the festival’s comedy acts.
Red Hot Chili Peppers and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are both Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees. So are fellow KAABOO 2017 performers Jackson Browne, Dave Mason and Eric Burdon & The Animals.
2017 KAABOO Del Mar
When: Sept. 15-17
Where: Del Mar Racetrack and San Diego County Fairgrounds
Tickets: $259 (three-day general admission pass); $799 (Hang Five VIP three-day pass); $2,799 (Hang Ten VIP three-day pass)
Online: kaaboodelmar.com
“I think we’ve made it even more well-rounded and star-studded than the two prior lineups,” said KAABOO mastermind Bryan E. Gordon.
“There are some acts in there this year that are complete legends and some that are extraordinary, up-and-coming talents. So there’s a lot of variety that should appeal to people, no matter whether you’re 20, 70 or anywhere in between.”
Broad appeal has been a goal of KAABOO since its 2015 debut.
The festival is the brainchild of Gordon, the Denver-based chairman of The Madison Companies LLC, the multibillion-dollar private investment firm he co-founded in 1996.
This year will see KAABOO partnering with Virgin Produced. It is the entertainment production division of Virgin, the international conglomerate whose holdings range from Virgin Airlines and Virgin Hotels to Virgin Wine and Virgin Radio International.
“Virgin will be related with KAABOO in an artist relations and content-production capacity,” said KAABOO’s newly appointed Chief Marketing Office Jason Felts, also the CEO of Virgin Produced in Los Angeles.
“We’ll be documenting the entire KAABOO experience for people who may not be able to attend ... so it will be an immersive experience. I went to KAABOO in 2015 with my parents, who live in Del Mar, and it was incredible.”
Gordon bills KAABOO as a “mixperience.” The previous two editions have offered a range of VIP amenities, from on-site concierges and complimentary food prepared by a private chef to surfing lessons with Rob Machado and a swimming pool with private cabanas overlooking one of the stages.
Last year’s edition of KAABOO saw a marked increase in attendance, with an estimated 40,000 people - the event’s daily legal capacity - turning out on Sept. 17. That was the day when Aerosmith and The Chainsmokers each drew overflow crowds for their concurrent sets on the festival’s largest two outdoors stages.
The large crowds led to some bumps, including traffic jams in the parking lot, longs lines of pedestrians and a melee that occurred when far more people tried to attend a late-night performance by hip-hop star Ludacris than could be accommodated.
“The whole layout of the site has been tweaked from last year to try and provide for better crowd flow and a little more of a central core for late-night activities,” Gordon said. “We’re also adding a ride-share terminal, where both Uber and Lyft will be able to pick up and drop off people in a central location.”
For continuing coverage and updates about KAABOO, go to pacificsandiego.com/tag/kaaboo.
2017 KAABOO Del Mar lineup
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Pink
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Muse
Weezer
Jane’s Addiction
David Guetta
Ice Cube
Jason Derulo
Logic
Alanis Morissette
Jackson Browne
Andy Grammer
Kesha
L?VE
X Ambassadors
Garbage
Milky Chance
T-Pain
Michael McDonald
The Wallflowers
DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal)
Machine Gun Kelly
Pepper
Timeflies
Pete Yorn
The Magpie Salute
Smash Mouth
The Knocks
Dave Mason
Toad The Wet Sprocket
LANY
Eric Burdon & The Animals
Lost Kings
Le Youth
The Him
The Tubes, featuring Fee Waybill
Trevor Hall
Fishbone
The Motet
The Shadowboxers
Little Hurricane
Sam Sparro
Kapslap
Martin Jensen
Led Zeppelin 2
Emily Warren
Lawrence
The Stone Foxes
One Drop
SteevieWild
Darenots
The Last Internationale
Ages and Ages
Moonsville Collective
Armors
Luna Aura
Jared & The Mill
Ethan Tucker Solo Acoustic
The Steppin Stones
Tristen
Cordovas
Lost Beach
Mamafesta
Josh Arbour
Zeal Levin
Kira Lingman
Trouble in the Wind
Barenaked Ladies (VIP opening night)
The Dan Band (VIP opening night)
Twitter @georgevarga
