🎶 Zac Brown Honored, Yungblud Takes a Stand

May 29, 2025
by RJ Hamster

👋 You know the vibe—welcome back to Fans With Benefits, where the music isn’t just in your headphones, it’s in the headlines, the heart, and the hands that keep the beat alive. This week, we’re tuning into legacy and reinvention—from Zac Brown’s salute to veterans at the AMAs to Yungblud’s fight for fairer ticket prices, plus a packed tour calendar featuring Foo Fighters, Falling In Reverse, Ringo Starr, and more.

With milestone festivals like Summer Camp’s 25th anniversary and new dates from legends like The Beach Boys and Grizzly Bear, it’s a week that spans eras, genres, and generations.

Ready your feed and your friends—here’s what’s shaping the sound right now.

On our radar:

Zac Brown Honored at 2025 AMAs
Yungblud, The Cure & Smashing Pumpkins Push for Fairer Shows
10+ Events
- Pitchfork Music Festival London 2025
- Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band
- Foo Fighters
- III Points Festival
- Falling In Reverse

Catch up, plug in, and press play—this is what’s next. 🎧

🤘 Backstage Pass

The Price Is Right: Yungblud, The Cure & Smashing Pumpkins Push for Fairer Shows

Yungblud is keeping it loud and low-cost, headlining his second annual Bludfest on June 21 at Milton Keynes Bowl—with tickets capped at just £65. The move puts him in lockstep with kindred spirits Robert Smith and Billy Corgan, who’ve all pushed back against soaring live music prices.

The alt-rock disruptor says he bonded with the legends over a shared mission to keep shows accessible: “Me and Robert have such a mutual fire in us to be pioneers in making a change on ticket prices,” he told the Daily Star.

With plans to take Bludfest global—à la Ozzfest—and dreams of someday booking The Cure, Yungblud is building more than a festival. He’s building a movement. One where fans don’t have to break the bank to belong.

🫡 Artists Doing Good

Voice for the Brave: Zac Brown Honored at 2025 AMAs

Zac Brown took the stage in Las Vegas on Memorial Day to accept the inaugural Veterans Voice Award at the 2025 American Music Awards—an honor spotlighting artists who use their platforms to uplift U.S. veterans and their families. For Brown, it wasn’t just another accolade—it was a call to attention. 🇺🇸

“It’s not about me,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “It’s about honoring them and helping them get the tools they need to heal and transition back home.”

Brown’s long-standing commitment to veterans runs deep. Through Camp Southern Ground—his foundation’s Georgia-based campus—he provides critical support for post-service life, alongside organizations like Hope for the Warriors. 💪

The AMAs celebrated that work by welcoming veterans to the ceremony itself—something Brown said made the night even more meaningful. “We owe them a lot,” he said. “It’s an incredible place to live, and we feel safe and free because of what they’ve sacrificed.”

The evening also marked a personal milestone: Zac’s red carpet debut with girlfriend Kendra Scott, calling her “the best date by my side” in an Instagram post.

With a new album on the way and No Wake Zone still soaking up the sun, Brown’s year is shaping up to be as heartfelt as it is high-profile.💙

📢 Sound Off

Who dropped the most iconic patriotic summer anthem?

Bruce Springsteen – Born in the U.S.A.

Toby Keith – Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue

Metallica – Don’t Tread on Me

Miley Cyrus – Party in the U.S.A.

Johnny Cash – Ragged Old Flag

Lee Greenwood – God Bless the U.S.A.

The Avett Brothers – This Land Is Your Land

🗳️ Cast your vote, and yes—we know you’ve got opinions. Let’s hear ’em.

🎶 Event Radar

Pitchfork Music Festival London 2025 – Second Wave Announced

London’s sharpest tastemaking festival just added more fuel to the fire. The 2025 edition of Pitchfork Music Festival London has unveiled its second wave of artists, rounding out a lineup that spans avant-pop, gritty post-punk, forward-thinking hip-hop, and electronic deep cuts. Set across a variety of venues in the city’s most culture-forward neighborhoods, this isn’t just a festival—it’s a weeklong masterclass in musical discovery. Whether you’re chasing buzzy debuts or longtime cult favorites, this one’s curated for true heads.

Get tickets here

Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band – Fall Tour Dates Added

Peace, love, and drum solos: they’re back for more. Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band are extending their feel-good, hit-packed tour into the fall, adding new dates for fans to twist, shout, and sing along. Featuring a rotating lineup of rock and pop legends—each with their own string of chart-toppers—this is less a concert and more a live-action greatest hits playlist. Led by the ever-charming Beatle himself, it’s a timeless celebration of music, nostalgia, and good vibes.

Get tickets here

Foo Fighters – Three More Dates

Foo Fighters have been tearing up stages with their latest tour, and now they’re giving fans three more reasons to raise their fists. With decades of hits and the kind of relentless energy that only Dave Grohl & co. can deliver, these new dates promise all the classic Foo chaos—blistering guitars, cathartic screams, and the kind of audience connection you don’t often find at arena scale. Whether you’re a lifer or just diving in, this is what rock shows are supposed to feel like.

Get tickets here

III Points Festival – Miami 2025

Miami’s most progressive festival returns to Wynwood with a lineup that blurs genre lines and bends expectations. III Points fuses music, art, and technology into a two-day deep dive of underground icons, boundary-pushers, and next-wave sounds. From industrial techno to alt-R&B, it’s not just a festival—it’s a culture shift.

Get tickets here

Falling In Reverse – God Is A Weapon Tour!

Heavy riffs, theatrical flair, and Ronnie Radke in full command—Falling In Reverse is back on the road, delivering metalcore chaos with post-hardcore drama. Expect viral anthems, explosive energy, and a live show built to leave a mark. From shredding solos to full-scale spectacle, this tour is firing on all cylinders.

Get tickets here

Passion Pit – Tour Announcement – Bloghaus hearts, assemble. Passion Pit returns to the stage with a nostalgia-packed tour of synth-pop bangers and falsetto euphoria. Get tickets here
Summer Camp Music Festival – 25th Anniversary Edition – For its 25th anniversary, one of the longest-running independent festivals in the country is pulling out all the stops—mixing legacy acts with up-and-coming genre benders, all set against a backdrop of camping, community, and late-night magic. Get tickets here
The Beach Boys – Endless Summer, Still Going – The Beach Boys continue their eternal surf with new dates bringing good vibrations across the U.S. Expect harmonies, California dreams, and a time-capsule setlist that spans generations. Get tickets here
Grizzly Bear – First North American Tour Since 2019 – After a six-year silence on the road, Grizzly Bear returns with their first North American tour since 2019. Known for their intricate harmonies, textured arrangements, and emotionally rich live sets, the band is picking up where they left off—with added depth and a sharpened edge. Get tickets here
Modest Mouse & Built to Spill – Fall 2025 Tour Extension – Two indie-rock institutions, one extended run. Modest Mouse and Built to Spill are adding more dates to their co-headlining tour this fall, giving fans another shot at catching a night of slacker anthems, jagged guitars, and cult-favorite setlists. Get tickets here

🎤 Mic Drop

Freddie Mercury’s Extra Teeth and His Legendary Voice

Freddie Mercury, Queen’s frontman, had four extra teeth—a condition called hyperdontia—that gave him his famous overbite. He believed these teeth helped his singing, so he never had them fixed. Science later showed his vocal power came from his unique control of “false vocal cords” and jaw structure—not his teeth! Read more here.

That’s a wrap for this week! Until next time, catch you in the pit—or next week’s email. 🎵🔥

Signing off,

The Fandiem Team

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Everything you need to grow your network

RJ Hamster

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🎶 Zac Brown Honored, Yungblud Takes a Stand