IHeartRadio Music Festival


The iHeartRadio Music Festival is a two-day music concert festival held every year in September since 2011 by iHeartRadio along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States.
From 2011 to 2015, the festival was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2013, iHeartRadio added the free Daytime Village at the iHeartRadio Music Festival which takes place at the Las Vegas Village. In 2016, the iHeartRadio Music Festival moved to the T-Mobile Arena, and has hosted the main portion of the festival since.
The annual event has aired as a television special every year since its launch. In 2011 the event was televised by VH1, while every edition since 2012 has been broadcast by The CW, kicking off that network's fall television season.
According to Billboard, the main festival "showcases some of the most well-established artists in the genre" while the village showcases emerging artists. In 2013, the magazine wrote that the festival had "quickly established itself as a home to every major artist."
The iHeartRadio Music Festival is part of iHeartMedia's roster of major concert events, which includes the iHeartSummer’17 Weekend by AT&T; the nationwide iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Concert Tour; the iHeartCountry Festival; and the iHeartRadio Music Awards.

Line-ups

2011

The 2011 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 23 and 24. The lineup featured performances by: The Black Eyed Peas, Kelly Clarkson, Bruno Mars, Carrie Underwood, Karmin, Jane's Addiction, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Jay-Z, Steven Tyler, Nicki Minaj, Rascal Flatts, Jennifer Lopez, Sublime with Rome, David Guetta, Kenny Chesney and Lady Gaga.

2012

The 2012 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 21 and 22. The lineup featured performances by: Rihanna, Green Day, Usher, Swedish House Mafia, Lil Wayne, Psy, Jason Aldean, Bon Jovi, Megan and Liz, Miranda Lambert, No Doubt, Pitbull, deadmau5, Aerosmith, Linkin Park, Taylor Swift, Mary J. Blige, Enrique Iglesias, Calvin Harris, Brad Paisley and Pink
This event is best known for Green Day lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong losing his temper during the band's performance. Armstrong swore nearly 50 times as he ranted about a lack of engagement from the audience and Green Day's set being cut to 20 minutes due to Usher receiving 25 extra minutes for his performance. Armstrong and bassist Mike Dirnt smashed their guitar and bass and walked off stage. Green Day announced that Armstrong had checked into rehab a few days afterwards and apologised on Armstrong's behalf. Despite the apology, iHeartRadio and Usher have received harsh criticism on YouTube for the incident.

2013

The 2013 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 20 and 21. The lineup featured performances by: Queen + Adam Lambert, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Ylvis, Chris Brown, Drake, Benny Benassi, Elton John, J. Cole, Fun, Miguel, Tiësto, Muse, Keith Urban, Robin Thicke, The Summer Set, Miley Cyrus, Kesha, Phoenix, Bruno Mars, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Maroon 5, Zedd, Tim McGraw and Paul McCartney.
The 2013 Daytime Village lineup featured Miley Cyrus, The Wanted, Jason DeRulo, The Band Perry, Avril Lavigne, Krewella, Cher Lloyd, Ne-Yo, Twenty One Pilots, Pete Tong, and Awolnation.

2014

The 2014 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 19 and 20. The lineup featured performances by: Ariana Grande, Before You Exit, Usher, Zac Brown Band, Steve Aoki, Mötley Crüe, Nicki Minaj, Coldplay, Taylor Swift, Iggy Azalea, Eric Church, Meghan Trainor, Calvin Harris, Bastille, Lil Jon, Paramore, Lorde, Train, Weezer, Ed Sheeran and One Direction.
The 2014 Daytime Village lineup featured Lil Jon, Neon Trees, Iggy Azalea, Nico & Vinz, Meghan Trainor, Magic!, Fences, Jason DeRulo, 5 Seconds of Summer, Childish Gambino, and Kacey Musgraves.

2015

The 2015 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 18 and 19. The lineup featured performances by: Demi Lovato, Kanye West, Sam Smith, Coldplay, David Guetta, Kenny Chesney, The Weeknd, Tove Lo, Lil Wayne, Fall Out Boy, Disclosure, Hozier, Jason Derulo, Duran Duran, Prince Royce, Diplo, Trey Songz, The Killers, Blake Shelton, Nick Jonas, Diddy, Christina Grimmie and Jennifer Lopez. Janet Jackson was due to perform on September 19, but withdrew and was replaced by Jennifer Lopez.
The 2015 Daytime Village lineup featured Demi Lovato, Hozier, Tove Lo, Trey Songz, Walk the Moon, Nick Jonas, Big Sean, Lee Brice, George Ezra, Tori Kelly, Echosmith, James Bay, The Struts, Zella Day, and Shawn Mendes

2016

The 2016 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 23 and 24. The lineup featured performances by: Ariana Grande, Drake, Britney Spears, Sam Hunt, Twenty One Pilots, Billy Idol, Florida Georgia Line, OneRepublic, Sia, Cage The Elephant, Tears For Fears, Pitbull, U2, Sting, Usher, Backstreet Boys, Green Day and Zedd.
The 2016 Daytime Village lineup featured Daya, Troye Sivan, DNCE, Sam Hunt, Good Charlotte, The Chainsmokers, Cold War Kids, Hailee Steinfeld, Jeremih, Alessia Cara, Cage the Elephant, Lissie, Panic! at the Disco, and Bryson Tiller

2017

The 2017 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 22 and 23. The lineup featured performances by Coldplay, The Weeknd, DJ Khaled, Miley Cyrus, Lorde, Kings of Leon, Big Sean, Pink, Chris Stapleton, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Niall Horan, David Guetta, Thomas Rhett, Harry Styles, Kesha and Louis Tomlinson, plus iHeartRadio's Rising Star Winner James Maslow.
The 2017 Daytime Village lineup included: Migos, Halsey, Flume, Little Mix, French Montana, Niall Horan, Bleachers, Kelsea Ballerini, Judah and the Lion, Bebe Rexha, Noah Cyrus, Hey Violet, Cheat Codes, All Time Low, Khalid, and Julia Michaels.
The annual tape-delayed broadcast of the festival was delayed by mutual decision by The CW and iHeartMedia on October 2 indefinitely in the aftermath of the 2017 Las Vegas shooting during the Route 91 Harvest festival the night before, as the iHeart Radio Music Festival utilized the same Las Vegas Village lot for the Daytime Festival the Route 91 festival did for their full event. It was eventually slotted on two nights over four hours, November 22 and 24, sandwiching Thanksgiving Day.

2018

The 2018 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 21 and 22, with the Daytime Village moving to the Las Vegas Festival Grounds and memorials to the victims of the 2017 Route 91 Harvest festival also a part of the event.. The lineup featured performances by Justin Timberlake, Mariah Carey, Jack White, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jason Aldean, Childish Gambino, Logic, Imagine Dragons, Panic! at the Disco, Luke Bryan, Shawn Mendes, Rae Sremmurd, Kygo and Fleetwood Mac, plus iHeartRadio's Rising Star Winner Heffron Drive. Sam Smith was scheduled to perform on September 21 but had to cancel last minute due to vocal problems.
The Daytime Village lineup included: Logic, Dua Lipa, 5 Seconds of Summer, Lil Uzi Vert, Dustin Lynch, Bazzi, Belly, Bobby Bones and the Raging Idiots, Greta Van Fleet, Bad Bunny, Grandson, Leon Bridges, MAX, Badflower, Evvie, The Vamps and Drax Project.

2019

The 2019 iHeartRadio Music Festival took place on September 20 and 21. The lineup featured Alicia Keys, Cage the Elephant, Camila Cabello, Chance the Rapper, Def Leppard, French Montana, Halsey, Heart, H.E.R., Miley Cyrus, Mumford and Sons, Tim McGraw, Zac Brown Band, Steve Aoki, Hootie and the Blowfish, Marshmello, Backstreet Boys, Green Day, and T-Pain.
The Daytime Village lineup included: Maren Morris, Billie Eilish, Old Dominion, Zara Larsson, CNCO, Brett Young, H.E.R., Monsta X, Fletcher, Bryce Vine, Lauv and Loud Luxury.

2020

The 2020 iHeartRadio Music Festival, the very first virtual festival which will celebrate the festival's 10th anniversary, will take place on September 18 and 19. The lineup will feature performances by BTS, Coldplay, Kane Brown, Keith Urban, Migos, Miley Cyrus, Thomas Rhett, Usher and More. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic all performances will be held virtualy and will be viewable on The CW app.

Press coverage

Entertainment Weekly in its review of the inaugural festival called out the rotating stage as a mechanism that kept the show on schedule, noting that the festival "was all about instant gratification" with a general focus on radio hits. In 2012, the angry departure of singer Billie Joe Armstrong from the stage after organizers ended the Green Day set prematurely prompted coverage by news outlets such as Billboard, MTV, Fuse and Huffington Post. The year was also noted for a number of duets, including when unexpected performer Prince joined Mary J. Blige for two numbers, when P!nk sang "Just A Girl" with No Doubt, and when Swedish House Mafia teamed up with Usher in performing their song "Euphoria". In 2014, Billboard commented on the recent radio successes of the performers on the Daytime Village stage, stating that "With so many performers that had recently broken out of relative obscurity with smash singles, the iHeartRadio Village felt like a Top 40 playlist put on shuffle." In 2014, the Associated Press noted that a few surprises had been mixed with the show's "steady dose of hits", including an appearance of the Black Eyes Peas' Will.I.Am on stage with DJ Steve Aoki and "unexpected appearances" by Alicia Keys and Jason DeRulo.