A rendering of the redeveloped Brown’s Island (Photo courtesy Venture Richmond)
The summertime tradition of riverfront concerts on Brown’s Island may be disrupted this year, but planned renovations promise that visitors will continue making memories when the venue reopens in 2027.
The 23-acre island, nestled between the iconic elevated train tracks and the downtown skyline, has been part of the James River Park System since 1987 and hosted live music nearly as long. “You probably have at least two, maybe three, generations of Richmonders who probably saw their first-ever concert on Brown’s Island,” says Doug Nunnally, founding editor of the local music blog The Auricular and creator of the Newlin Music Prize.
He speaks fondly of the communal outdoor concert experience and watching a freight train rumble over the river, blowing its horn as a band seamlessly slows its tempo or reaches the bridge of a song in a congruence that sometimes seems brilliantly choreographed. “I think those are the type of live music moments that you can’t really replicate,” Nunnally says. “And I think people will chase those moments the rest of their life going to other concerts.”
Improvements
The city and Venture Richmond, the nonprofit that manages the park and organizes the Friday Cheers concert series and the Richmond Folk Festival, started developing plans for the $30 million renovation of Brown’s Island in 2018. After a delayed start, the city has allocated $15 million of public money for the project, and Venture Richmond has pledged to cover the rest through private fundraising.
Major elements of the renovations include permanent bathrooms, drinking fountains, an improved ADA-compliant boardwalk, native plant landscaping, shade sails and new terraces at the Seventh Street entrance, and a promenade overlooking a restored riverbank buffer on the James River.
A new pavilion under the Manchester bridge will include a loading dock, restrooms and a greenroom for artists. “The concert stage will be much like the one we have been using that gets set up and taken down seasonally,” says Venture Richmond spokesperson Erika Gay.
Show Schedule
Venture Richmond has placed Friday Cheers on hiatus for 2026 due to the construction. However, Gay says, Dominion Energy Riverrock will return to the downtown riverfront area, including Tredegar Street and the Allianz Amphitheater, on May 15-17, and the Richmond Folk Festival will take place on the island Oct. 9-11. Beyond that, specifics are largely unknown. “The concert season won’t start up on Brown’s Island until spring 2027, over a year from now, and so we are still working out the details,” Gay says.
The Broadberry Entertainment Group is the other main organizer of events and concerts on the island, including the Live Loud concert series that runs from April through October. Jessica Gordon, co-owner and booker for The Broadberry, says Live Loud is temporarily moving to nearby Kanawha Plaza, which is bounded by Seventh, Ninth, East Byrd and Canal streets. “We chose Kanawha Plaza because it’s a really similar site to Brown’s Island in terms of proximity to the river and the general location downtown,” Gordon says.
They will have the capacity to sell up to 5,500 tickets for concerts — 1,000 fewer than at Brown’s Island. They are also scheduling fewer shows this summer. Gordon notes that traffic around the downtown park will be blocked to provide safe entry and exit for artists, vendors and patrons.
Looking ahead, Gordon says she’s already booking shows for the 2027 season and feels optimistic as Brown’s Island offers a more festival-like experience in a field rather than a seated venue.
Prabir Mehta, a longtime local musician and frontman of the namesake Prabir Trio, who performed at an opening party for the Allianz Amphitheater last year, feels positive about the addition and improvement of riverfront spaces cultivating culture and the arts. “I think inherently giving people a chance to gather and have a place to see performances and to make memories, that’s not a bad thing,” he says.
Listening to feedback from fans will be key, he adds. “Hopefully everybody that’s involved here is going to be doing it in a way that elevates the experience for the audience, the musicians and everything.”
Dominion Energy Riverrock (Photo by Byron Garrett courtesy Dominion Energy Riverrock)
Follow the Sound
Where to go for outdoor summer concerts
Dominion Energy Riverrock
The festival returns to the downtown riverfront area May 15-17 with 13 free concerts. Acts include folk and soul band Cassidy Snider & The Wranglers (5/16), indie performer Deau Eyes (5/17), and rock duo Illiterate Light (5/17). riverrockrva.com
Music at Maymont
Hosted on the Carriage House Lawn at Maymont, the series kicks off with the Southern rock supergroup Toy Factory Project (5/20), followed by Punch Brothers (5/21), the American roots acts Old Crow Medicine Show & Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives (5/29), and local rockers Carbon Leaf (6/6). musicatmaymont.com
Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront
The downtown amphitheater hosts two dozen concerts this summer, including such notable acts as Sting (5/25), Khalid (6/10), Chicago (6/17), The Strokes (7/12), The Black Keys (8/1), Chris Stapleton (9/19), Goo Goo Dolls (9/1), and Mt. Joy (9/29). allianzamphitheater.com
After Hours Concerts
The Innsbrook Pavilion in Glen Allen will welcome 19 acts from May to September. The mix of national headliners and tribute bands includes country artists Gary Allan (5/28) and Chris Janson (6/5), ’80s tribute band The Legwarmers (7/3), KC and The Sunshine Band (7/9), Little River Band (7/31), Indigo Girls (7/14), and The Concert: A Tribute to ABBA (8/7). afterhoursinnsbrook.com
Live Loud Concert Series
Two shows are currently scheduled for Kanawha Plaza: Hot Mulligan with Joyce Manor, Saturdays At Your Place, and Koyo (6/10) and the JamPacked Craft Beer & Music Festival (8/1). thebroadberry.com
Groovin’ in the Garden
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s annual series started in April and continues through July. Look for rock band Everclear (6/17), a cappella ensemble Straight No Chaser (7/9), indie group Band of Horses with Dinosaur Jr. (7/14), singer-songwriter Jesse Welles (7/29), Fleetwood Mac tribute Rumours Atl (7/30), and Graham Nash (7/31) of Crosby, Stills & Nash. lewisginter.org
Virginia Credit Union Live
The amphitheater at Richmond Raceway has announced two shows so far: folk artists Lord Huron (6/19) and country rocker Koe Wetzel (9/19). vaculive.com
Shows continue to be announced; visit the venues’ websites for updates.
