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Jahaura Michelle
Why are More Music Lovers Attending Concerts and Festivals Alone?
Did you know that in pre-pandemic times (the good old days of 2019), only 8% of people had attended a music festival alone? Fast forward to 2025 and according to a recent Ticketmaster report, that figure has more than tripled to an impressive 29%. With more festivalgoers choosing to experience events solo, the event space has taken notice — with some events, like the Essence Festival (held during Independence Day weekend), AFROPUNK (in Brooklyn, New York, and Bahia, Brazil, at different times of the year), Lollapalooza (held in Chicago in late July and early August), and the Austin City Limits Music Festival (held in October in Austin, Texas) pivoting to attract solo travelers. Reading and Leeds Festivals in England also made headlines for their new, solo-specific campsites for attendees who opted to experience the event alone.
Take Anaïs Espinosa, for example, a 26-year-old from London, who told The Guardian that she prefers to attend festivals alone because it gives her freedom to do things on her own time as opposed to attending these events with others.
“If I go to an event with someone else, I can very much spend the night doing their night, as they would want it,” Espinosa said. “When I’m alone, I get to do whatever I want in the moment, whether that’s going to get a drink or being right at the front where the DJ is. You just act on pure instinct. I feel like a little video game character in a funny story.”
While the percentage of people attending these events alone has risen, people’s reasons for opting to go it alone tend to vary. According to Ticketmaster’s findings, 38% say they’re interested in going to festivals solo because of their love for a specific artist or genre, another 34% cited flexibility as their reason, while 31% each said they enjoy meeting new people or valuing their alone time.
Attending music concerts and festivals alone seems to be part of a larger cultural shift that has led to the expansion of solo travel. Earlier this year, TravelNoire reported that both Gen-Z and millennials prefer to travel alone to curate their own itineraries and explore new things on their own time without having to compromise it for the sake of others.
Who’s Inspiring the Future of Solo Adventures
Younger adults are redefining the future of travel, both domestically and internationally —breaking away from traditional norms, stepping out of their comfort zones, and exploring the world more than previous generations. A 2025 American Express Travel report notes: “70% of Millennials and Gen Z surveyed like to plan trips that focus on enjoying the journey as much as the destination.”
This mindset further reflects how these age groups would rather focus on experience over itineraries — prioritizing a vacation packed with activities each day, to one spent on their own terms. Many may have found inspiration in public figures such as Tracee Ellis Ross, who has been candid about her solo travel adventures and the empowerment that comes with exploring the world alone. Ellis Ross recently debuted a three-part docuseries: “Solo Traveling with Tracee Ellis Ross” — further cementing her role as #GOALS for Gen Z & Millennials and giving aspirational travelers an inside look at her luxurious international travels and a POV into her mindset while she explores the world solo.
“I’ve always traveled solo. I’ve been traveling solo since I was about 24 or 25 years old. I have taken at least one, if not two, solo travel trips a year since then,” the 52-year-old told Essence. “It’s something I do, something I love, and something I enjoy. It’s something that offers me a huge benefit.”
Ross’s experiences prove that traveling alone is about more than just vacations; it’s the lifetime experiences and memories you collect from around the world, with the best companion: Yourself!