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Big summer of music on tap around Atlanta

By Nelson Hicks, WSB-TV
By Nelson Hicks, WSB-TV

ATLANTA — The summer music season is here, and that means plenty of the biggest bands on tour today passing through the Atlanta area in the next couple months. Jason Aldean, the Zac Brown Band, Dave Matthews, Jimmy Buffett, KISS and Drake are just a few of the musicians that have played or will play around town this summer.

And when you're talking tunes in the summer, most of the action moves outdoors to venues like Aaron's Amphitheater at Lakewood.

Lakewood hosted a media night Friday night where the venue invited 25 media members to tour the facility and discover some of the recent upgrades. Nelson's news on wsbtv.com was on the list.

GALLERY: Jason Aldean & Luke Bryan play Lakewood

Lakewood holds 19,000 fans, 12,000 of whom dance the night away on the lawn. Live Nation Atlanta president Peter Conlon mentioned that fans who haven't visited Lakewood the last couple years will hardly recognize the venue of the early 2000s. Case in point, the amphitheater has made a number of upgrades to the concourse, which on some nights include food trucks. The 40 acres of on-site parking, V.I.P. area and lighting have been redone, too.

There really isn't a bad seat in the house. Watching the show from the back of the lawn can be as fun as watching it from a front row seat.
On tap at Lakewood, Dave Matthews is Tuesday night. Def Leppard and Buffett play in June, Motley Crue, Motorhead, 311 will perform in July. The Flashback Festival, Toby Keith and Phish are set to play in August. Twenty-four shows have been booked thus far with a few more still to be announced.
GALLERY: Toby Keith plays Lakewood
GALLERY: Poison, Motley Crue rock Atlanta
GALLERY: Def Leppard takes the stage
GALLERY: Jimmy Buffett, Parrotheads take over the city
GALLERY: Fans pack Lakewood for Kenny Chesney
GALLERY: KISS visits Atlanta

There are plenty of other opportunities to check out some live music around Atlanta, too. Sting will play at Chastain Park. Aerosmith, Jennifer Lopez and LMFAO will take the stage at Philips Arena. Brett Michaels is scheduled to play the Fred in Peachtree City, Kelly Clarkson and My Morning Jacket are on the bill at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Alpharetta and Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw share a date at the Georgia Dome. Music Midtown returns this year, too. It's Sept. 21 and 22 at Piedmont Park. Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, T.I. and Ludacris are part of the festival.

WSBTV

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