San Francisco Concerts & Live Music

The beautiful city of San Francisco is known for a lot of things, and music tops the list. After a fun-filled day of touring the impressive diversity of SF streets (count your steps, we dare you), wind down with some of the country’s best musical performances and venues.

Whether you’re looking for top-notch DJs, sexy salsa, 80’s night or local, hidden talent, San Francisco is here for you. 

Summer Festivals

People come from all over the country to experience the summer music festivals of San Francisco, and you’ve got a lot to choose from. The Treasure Island Music Festival boasts a unique combination of art, food, music and a giant ferris wheel. Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is free and held in beautiful Golden Gate Park, and hosts headliners like Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper, M. Ward and Emmylou Harris, among (many) others.

You’ve also got the famous Outside Lands festival, also boasting big names from Kanye West to Elton John, not to mention great food, drinks, art and a golf course (because every good music festival should offer mini-golf).

City Venues

San Francisco’s city venues are where its music scene really shines. Check out the Fillmore Auditorium on Geary Street and soak up its rich history of artists like The Doors, Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix among crystal chandeliers and velvet curtains. 

The Great American Music Hall on Ofarrell St used to be mainly a jazz venue, but now is home to a wide variety of genres (not to mention a wrap-around balcony and plenty of room to dance).

Yoshi’s in Japan Town offers dining and incredible names in jazz, hip-hop, R&B and soul, and the Chapel in the Mission District is an indie music lover’s paradise (and it’s just downright adorable). 

Latin Beats

SF is one of the best cities nationwide to hear and dance to latin music, especially salsa. Not only can you choose from endless classes ranging from beginner to advanced, but you can pretty much get out and dance any night of the week.

Check out Bissap Baobab in the Mission on Wednesday nights for a salsa party until 2am, SalsaCrazy Mondays at Neck of the Woods in the Richmond from 7pm-2am, or Space 550 on Friday and Saturday nights for a multiple room mix of cumbia, bachata, salsa and more. The impressive mix of Latino culture and music will leave you feeling like you’ve stepped momentarily into another world.

Insider Tips: Open Mic

Want to sit back, relax and enjoy undiscovered SF talent? Check out Hotel Utah’s famous open mic night every Monday at 7pm. You’ll here an impressive array of genres and artists, and a featured musician that plays for a half hour at 10pm. Hotel Utah has recorded thousands of their open mic singers/songwriters over the years and is definitely worth checking out.

How to Get There

San Francisco has decent public transit options, so if you’re staying in one of the more central neighborhoods, you’ll have no problem hopping on bus, BART or MUNI to get to any one of the above-mentioned venues. Trains and buses within SF (MUNI) are reliable and frequent (plan your trip here), and BART will take you to the East Bay from the city (Oakland, Richmond, etc).