With 41 bands, Davis Music Fest is certain to have something for everyone this weekend

13th annual festival has become an early summer staple for area music fans

As I noted last year at this time, for our family this is an annual can't-miss, don't-dare-be-doing-anything-else, cancel-all-other-plans kind of event.

I'm talking about the Davis Music Fest, already legendary throughout the region in just its 13th year, which is an incredible accomplishment when you realize how much hard work goes into a project like this.

It's another example of how a small group of dedicated volunteers can put their heads together and come up with an event so popular that it continues to grow each and every year.

They're calling this year's event DMF Lucky #13 in honor of everyone's favorite number.

The immensely popular festival, which runs June 20-22 at a variety of Davis venues, is back for 2025 while bringing 41 bands and performers to town for what is easily our city's biggest weekend of live music at any time of the year.

The festival stretches over three days as a multi-venue, multi-genre live music event showcasing local, regional and touring artists, all to benefit art, music and performing arts programs at our local public schools.

According to organizers, "the festival takes place rain or shine."

Rain in Davis in June? We should be so lucky.

In fact, if it rains during the festival, I promise to buy Executive Director Kyle Monhollen a pint of his favorite ice cold beverage at the Davis brewpub of his choice.

Kyle Monhollen, Davis Music Fest executive director, introduces an act during the 2023 Festival. (ZoArt Photography)

Now, you may have heard some of these sweet and sometimes loud sounds wafting through the summer air in previous years even if you didn't attend, so this might be a good year to buy yourself a ticket and enjoy it all in person, whether for a single day or all three days.

The festival has a number of moving parts, not to mention moving people, and is once again presented by the all-volunteer Davis Live Music Collective with support from local venues, business partners, sponsors, performers and, of course, music lovers everywhere.

As always, there will truly be something for everyone.

Founded in 2011, Davis Music Fest is a celebration of live music and community designed to kick off the summer season and bring music lovers together to enjoy a wide range of sounds as well as all the food, drink and charm that downtown Davis has to offer.

Now known among insiders simply as DMF, the festival since its origin has been a celebration of local, regional and nationally touring artists. It's also a great reason to gather as a community around art and music, and serves as a fundraiser for art and music education in and beyond Davis.

The festival has grown from a one-day event with a dozen bands on two stages to its current three days and multiple stages showcasing dozens of artists from Seattle to Southern California and from Baja to British Columbia. In fact, in 2024 one group came all the way from New Orleans.

Festival organizers volunteer their time year-round to curate and promote the event as a widely accessible weekend of musical revelry and discovery, bringing back favorite alumni performers and introducing new artists across a variety of genres.

"A whole lot of people all doing different things have helped make this festival possible," said Monhollen, who credited Davis' Danny Tomasello with getting the DMF started in 2011.

With a wide variety of musicians and types of music over three days, Monhollen noted, "If there's something that isn't for you, stick around for 45 minutes and it will be different."

While the number of performers has pretty much reached capacity in recent years, attendance has increased dramatically each year as the festival's reputation for quality and excellence has spread throughout the region.