By Lorraine Meier

Last month, Stern Grove Festival announced the lineup for its 88th season, along with a new ticketing system designed to make access more equitable.

On June 15, Oakland’s soulful band, The California Honeydrops, will kick off the festival series. The 10-week admission-free summer concert series is packed with favorites like Michael Franti and Spearhead, The Pointer Sisters and Sleater-Kinney. Diana Ross, who rose to fame as the lead singer of the Supremes and is known as the “Queen of Motown Records,” wraps up the festival on Aug. 17.

All of the concerts are funded by individual donors, sponsors and organizations.

“We’re doing everything we can to preserve this incredible San Francisco tradition,” said Bob Fiedler, executive director for Stern Grove Festival. “In a world where most concerts are very costly, this is one of the last remaining places where music is free, accessible and truly for everyone. It has remained this way for 88 years, and the only way we can do it is from the support of our amazing community. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of Stern Grove – you’re the reason this tradition lives on! We’re so excited to bring these incredible acts to you this summer.”

New Ticketing System

The organizers have introduced a new ticketing system for the 2025 season designed to expand access for all fans. People come from all over the United States to attend the summer concert series. According to festival organizers, they have listened to the community and heard the challenges that some have experienced to get tickets.

Demand for tickets typically exceeds available space, and the previous first-come, first-served system presented challenges for people to get tickets on the day they were released.

There will be multiple ways to get tickets this season: lottery, community box office, volunteering with Stern Grove, partner/community ticket giveaways and donations for tables. The new ticketing system is designed to make the process fairer and more efficient.

Lottery

Enter the Online Ticket Lottery

• The ticket lottery for each concert opens at 10 a.m. six weeks before the show date.

• You’ll have two weeks to enter the lottery per show.

•  The lottery closes at 10 a.m. four weeks before the show date.

• You may enter the lottery for as many shows as you would like.

Winners will be notified by email.

Community Box Offices

In addition to the online ticket lottery, Stern Grove Festival will offer free tickets through in-person Community Box Offices located at select sites throughout San Francisco. A limited number of tickets will be available at each location the day before each concert, on a first-come, first-served basis.

Volunteer with Stern Grove

Volunteer at the festival or on the street team. Email volunteer@sterngrove.org for more information.

Partner Giveaways and Donations for Tables

Visit sterngrove.org and follow its social media to stay in the loop about giveaways. For information about VIP or Community Tables, email development@sterngrove.org.

To learn more about the process, visit sterngrove.org/ticket-info.