Top Spots to Catch Some Tunes

With a robust local music scene and touring artists making their way here, you'll always find a show to catch!

The Big Stages

Krannert Center for the Performing Arts

Five performance spaces, acoustics that have impressed more than a few Chicago Symphony conductors, and 300+ performances a season spanning symphony, opera, jazz, dance, theatre, and international touring acts. Located in Urbana on the University of Illinois campus.

The Virginia Theatre

A lovingly restored 1921 movie palace in downtown Champaign— intimate enough to feel personal, grand enough to host artists like Ben Folds, Elvis Costello, Neko Case, and Fran Lebowitz.

State Farm Center

Not just home to Fighting Illini basketball, Champaign's State Farm Center handles the biggest acts in the largest room, from major national performers to Broadway productions.

LIVE MUSIC

Rose Bowl Tavern

The honky-tonk heart of it all, right in downtown Urbana — live music every night, local and touring acts, and an outdoor stage in summer. 

The Space

This downtown Champaign spot has everything — chef-curated tasting menus, Malört on tap, and live music that runs the gamut from queer indie punk to eerie synth-driven shoegaze.

Pour Bros. Craft Taproom

Located in downtown Champaign, Pour Bros. features live music on the patio or indoors, paired with an impressive wall of Illinois and national craft beers and ciders.

Gallery Art Bar

Art on the walls, music on the stage, and an enticing menu of botanical cocktails (and sober-friendly options, too!) at this downtown Urbana hangout.

Loose Cobra

Don’t let the small-town location fool you. This live music joint in Tolono, just south of Champaign, consistently books touring bands that surprise and enthrall.

The Cadillac

A converted warehouse in downtown Paxton that regularly hosts emo and ‘80s nights, up-and-coming country artists, and wildly entertaining tribute bands.

Fall festivals & summer series

Pygmalion

Three days, multiple venues, and a local-to-global, can’t-miss lineup that spans music, comedy, literature, tech, and art. Spread out across Urbana venues.

CU Jazz Festival

An eclectic mix of rising artists and established names in various Champaign-Urbana location, showing off smooth grooves and improvisational brilliance.

CU Folk & Roots Festival

A cozy fall celebration of folk music in all its forms, right in downtown Urbana. Get swept up in 80+ performances, workshops, dances, jam sessions, and song circles.

Friday Night Live

Four stages, 14 Fridays, and a whole summer’s worth of free, outdoor music in downtown Champaign.

The Beat on Market Street

A late-night summer block party in downtown Champaign featuring reggae, funk, soul, roots, and hip-hop bands, plus high-energy DJs.

Mahomet Music Festival

A Main Street bash in Mahomet featuring national acts, local faves, a beer garden, carnival rides, and community parade. Small-town spirit, big-time fun.

Allerton Park Concert Series

Formal gardens, towering trees, a sky full of stars, and genres spanning Celtic folk to Chicago blues at the beautiful Allerton Park & Retreat Center in Monticello.

Champaign Park District’s Jazz in the Park

A free evening of live, local jazz under the summer sky at a rotating lineup of Champaign parks.

Urbana Park District’s Neighborhood Nights

Family-friendly shows in parks across Urbana—with free popcorn and lemonade!