Dead of Summer Music Festival Shares 2025 Artist Lineup: Melvin Seals & JGB, The Wailers, Prince/Bowie and More

Today, Southern Vermont’s local favorite radio station WEQX and Whirlygig Music have announced the return of Dead of Summer Music Festival, an immersive summit for fans of the Grateful Dead in the heart of the Green Mountains. Set to stage at Manchester, Vt.’s Hunter Park on July 11-13, the sixth annual iteration of the festival will once again welcome a lineup jam-packed with some of the foremost bands in the Dead cover scene, tapping a total of 22 acts to bolster the three-day tribute gathering.

The lineup for 2025’s Dead of Summer Music Festival is led by Melvin Seals and JGB, featuring the Jerry Garcia Band’s longtime keyboardist and his 30-year ensemble committed to celebrating the legacy of the late Grateful Dead frontman and his exceptional solo catalog. Other starring bands include Bob Marley’s iconic reggae backing band The Wailers and Prince/Bowie, who honor the music of two genre-bending icons with a revolving lineup previously featuring members of Pink Talking Fish, Remain In Light, Conehead Buddha, Twiddle, lespecial, Cool Cool Cool, Lotus and more.

Other familiar acts assuming the spotlight on the festival’s twin stages are Steely Dead, Dangermuffin, Talking Dreads, Dead Man’s Waltz, Bearly Dead, Deadgrass and Jatoba; The Wheel will perform R.E.M.’s Reckoning, Rev Tor and Friends will perform Graceland and Organ Fairchild will play the music of the Grateful Dead. Further acts down the bill include The Marks Brothers, Hilltop, Bar Brides, Misty Blues-Roadhouse Revival, Terrafunk, Krishna Guthrie and Bow Thayer, Heavy Nettles, Andy the Music Man and One World Puppetry.

Offstage, fans will have a chance to enjoy the natural setting with on-site camping and RV access. Dead of Summer Music Festival will also feature gourmet food and beverage vendors, boutique local crafts and a range of activities, including yoga, disc golf and kids and family-oriented creative projects like tie-dying and puppet-making.

Tickets for the sixth annual Dead of Summer Music Festival are available now. For more information, visit deadofsummermusicfestival.com.