Best Phoenix Concerts This Weekend: Yeat, Genesis Lake Jam, Maná

Welcome to the peak of the spring music festival season in the Valley. This weekend, no less than four multi-day outdoor concert spectacles will occur within a 100-mile radius of Phoenix, including the inaugural Bases and Brews Music Fest in Surprise, the Genesis Lake Jam in Roosevelt, and the Good Life Festival in Queen Creek.

If you’d prefer more of an indoor live music experience, those will also be in abundance this weekend, including gigs by rapper Yeat, ’80s favorites A Flock of Seagulls, and Mexican pop-rock band Maná.

Read on for details about all of the aforementioned concerts and festivals or click over to Phoenix New Times‘ online listings for more live music in the Valley from Friday, March 24, to Sunday, March 26.

Dom Flemons

Friday, March 24
Musical Instrument Museum, 4725 East Mayo BoulevardDom Flemons’ roots in the Valley run deep. His mother’s family goes back several generations in Phoenix, dating to the 1800s, while Flemons spent his childhood growing up in the area. The Valley is also where Flemons cut his teeth as a performer. In high school, he’d haunt local record stores and attend folk shows at venues. He bought his first guitar at iconic shop Ziggie’s Music before learning the finer points of the genre at local festivals. After leaving Arizona in the mid-2000s, he’s since gone on to greater fame, forming the Carolina Chocolate Drops, releasing several critically acclaimed albums encompassing a diversity of early American musical styles and genres – ranging from early jazz and blues to country and folk – and been featured on David Holt’s PBS show State of Music. This weekend, Flemons returns home for a performance at the MIM. 7:30 p.m., $28.50-$44.50 via mim.org. Benjamin Leatherman

A Flock of Seagulls

Friday, March 24
The Van Buren, 401 West Van Buren StreetThe last few times A Flock of Seagulls swooped into the Valley, they’ve been part of ’80s package tours featuring a mix of bands whose respective heydays occurred during the Reagan presidency. This time, the English-born synth-pop band led by vocalist/guitarist Mike Score, who is the only remaining original member, are headlining their own tour, but are still riding high on nostalgia. The bulk of the band’s current set lists are made up of songs from their back catalog – including “Space Age Love Song,” “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You),” “The More You Live, the More You Love,” and (of course) “I Ran (So Far Away)” – with a few of their newer tracks from 2018’s Ascension and 2021’s String Theory in the mix. But despite the nonstop derision the band has endured over the decades, there’s a certain guileless pleasure to be had listening to their giddy tunes. With Strangelove, 8 p.m., $27.50 via livenation.com. Benjamin Leatherman

Maná

Friday, March 24
Footprint Center, 201 East Jefferson Street
Saturday, March 25
Desert Diamond Arena, 9400 West Maryland AvenueMexican pop-rock band Maná is pulling double duty in the Valley this weekend when it comes to arena shows. First, they’ll play Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix on Friday before heading across town to Glendale’s Desert Diamond Arena the following evening. Both shows are technically sold out – though you can find tickets through resellers like StubHub or SeatGeek – illustrating the veteran band’s drawing power. Maná, which formed in 1986, has achieved legendary status both in the U.S. and their native country, as they’re considered to be one of the most successful Latin American bands of all time, having sold more than 40 million records worldwide, won multiple Grammy Awards, and performed at the White House during the Obama administration. So when our sister publication Miami New Times described them as “a world-beating powerhouse,” it wasn’t empty praise. 8:30 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. on Saturday, tickets are available on the secondary market. Benjamin Leatherman

Bases & Brews Music Fest

Friday, March 24, to Sunday, March 26
Mark Coronado Park, 15850 North Bullard Avenue, SurpriseAs it turns out, the Valley’s annual Cactus League is popular enough to merit two separate baseball-themed music festivals. But while last month’s Innings Festival served as the musical kickoff to spring training, this three-day event in Surprise will mark its end. According to Bases & Brews’ promoters, the music festival will offer sets by a variety of local musicians and bands each day, capped off by big-name headliners like Andy Grammer, Chris Lane, Walk the Moon, and Lovelytheband. There will also be carnival rides, midway games, food vendors, and more. 4 p.m. on March 24 and 10 a.m. on March 25 and 26, $20-$150 via go.ordermytix.com. Benjamin Leatherman

Genesis Lake Jam

Friday, March 24, to Sunday, March 26
Apache Lake Marina & Resort, 229.5 Mile Marker, RooseveltDespite sky-high gas prices, fans of the Valley’s electronic dance music scene will want to splurge on a full tank and make the hour-long journey to this three-day outdoor music festival along the shore of Apache Lake. More than four dozen local DJs and EDM artists will play a diverse mix of genres during Genesis Lake Jam, filling the air with beats and bass. The lineup includes such talents as Fairydust, Dirty Nabz, Coconut Optikz, Otterspace, Boom Bunny, Kip Killagain, and Luke Vader. Florida-based psychedelic grime/glitch-hop producer Mystic Grizzly will headline the event. The music starts at 4 p.m. on Friday and at 10 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Overnight camping will be available to anyone who’d like to spend the entire weekend at the event. $75-$800 via genesislakejam.com. Benjamin Leatherman

Good Life Festival

Saturday, March 25, and Sunday, March 26
Schnepf Farms, 24810 South Rittenhouse Road, Queen CreekProving there’s seemingly a music festival for every taste and demographic, this two-day experience at Queen Creek’s Schnepf Farms is aimed at pop-rock fans of, um … a certain age. Late ’70s/early ’80s hitmakers Kansas and Blue Oyster Cult will headline on Saturday with support from openers Beatles cover band 1964: The Tribute. The following day will see the festival taking a detour into the danger zone when Kenny Loggins performs. Hammy jokes aside, the gig is something that local fans of the 75-year-old singer, guitarist, and songwriter will want to check out, considering its likely their last chance to do so. Loggins has announced his latest tour will be his last, citing his advancing age and desire to spend more time with family “It’s time to come in off the road,” Loggins told the Arizona Republic. “There are so many logical reasons why. But I think what it finally boiled down to is ‘It’s time.'” 1:30 p.m. on Friday and 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, $25-$150 via etix.com. Benjamin Leatherman

Yeat

Sunday, March 26
Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 West Washington StreetYou think social media is your ally? You merely adopted it. Noah Olivier Smith (a.k.a. Yeat) was born in it, molded by it. An algorithmic weirdo, Yeat got on people’s radars thanks to YouTube and his tracks “Money So Big” and “Get Busy” going viral on TikTok, but it’s his talent for picking unusual beats and displaying an off-kilter personality in his verses that keeps him in the conversation. Drawing influence from T-Pain’s mastery of Auto-Tune and Playboi Carti’s hard-edged style, Yeat’s carved a distinct niche for himself with a series of mixtapes and albums that combine synths, hard beats, auto-tuned vocals, and clever wordplay. His stage name is a portmanteau of “yeet” and “heat,” Yeat throws fire over the clattering productions on 2023’s AfterLyfe. He raps over “rage beats,” a popular style of SoundCloud rap that draws on EDM-influenced beats and boisterous vocals. He shit-talks and boasts over big beats with the ease of a trapeze artist, never falling out of the pocket or losing his cool. 8 p.m., $49.50-$173.50 via livenation.com. Ashley Naftule