Free, family- and pet-friendly Live at the Plaza downtown concert series begins in May

Mark Hughes Cobb, Tuscaloosa News
Updated ·2 min read

Editor's note: The May 3 Live at the Plaza concert was canceled because of the threat of thunderstorms and will be rescheduled.

Just weeks after the spring concert season at the Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater kicks off April 18 with Riley Green, more music will fill the air with the city of Tuscaloosa's free spring-summer concert series, Live at the Plaza, starting May 3.

Though outdoors like the Amphitheater, Live at the Plaza offers very little fixed seating, so blankets and chairs are encouraged. Unlike the Amp, there's no charge to attend.

More: Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater preps for 2024 concert season with new name

The family-friendly May-June shows will be held each Friday from 6-9 p.m., weather permitting, in Government Plaza, abutting the free 400-spot parking deck at 2230 Seventh St. In past years, when other Fridays have been rained on, those shows were rescheduled for later in summer.

Here's the 2024 Live at the Plaza lineup:

Mahaley Smith and her little girl Leighton Smith dance to the music as music lovers gather at Government Plaza for Live at the Plaza Friday, June 23, 2023.
Mahaley Smith and her little girl Leighton Smith dance to the music as music lovers gather at Government Plaza for Live at the Plaza Friday, June 23, 2023.

  • May 3: Wax Monkey, Reed Brake (This show was canceled because of bad weather and will be rescheduled)

  • May 10: Conqueroos, Haysop

  • May 17: AJ and The Midnight Soulz, Myles Morgan

  • May 24: Dalton Bush Band, Firetown

  • May 31: Tyler Sellers & the Wreckers, Finding North

  • June 7: Plato Jones, Blind River Current

  • June 14: Dionysus, Lock 9 Band

  • June 21: Rockin' Dopsie Jr., Zach Guffey

  • July 28: John Wilson Experience, The3thirtythreeband

Live at the Plaza 2024 is sponsored by Coca-Cola and Avenue Pub, and features regional musicians, usually two bands each night, playing at constructed stages in Government Plaza. The series was begun in 2015 by the Tuscaloosa City Council as a quality-of-life offering, on belief it might draw folks to downtown Tuscaloosa. The city hoped for a few hundred guests, but crowds quickly grew to 1,000 or more.

Music lovers gather at Government Plaza for Live at the Plaza Friday, June 23, 2023.
Music lovers gather at Government Plaza for Live at the Plaza Friday, June 23, 2023.

Its success spun off a similar short-duration series last fall, Lunchtime Live, with music, food trucks and more at midddays in September, also on the Plaza.

For Live at the Plaza, food trucks will be on site, as will a kids' zone with activities. There are fixed restrooms in the breezeway connecting to the parking deck. Live at the Plaza is a free, and family- and pet-friendly event. Patrons can bring blankets or folding chairs. More information is available at www.tuscaloosa.com/latp.

Reach Mark Hughes Cobb at mark.cobb@tuscaloosanews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Who's playing in Tuscaloosa's Live at the Plaza concert series