Each day during Summerfest, we’re rounding up the festival’s highlights and hidden gems and sharing Radio Milwaukee staff picks. Here’s everything you need to know about the final day of Summerfest, which includes Guns N' Roses, The Flaming Lips, Lunay, Shiela E and more. Plus, here's how you can get in for free today from noon to 7 p.m.
(If you’re looking for the complete 2021 Summerfest daily schedules, you can find them here.)
Today at American Family Insurance Amphitheater: Guns N' Roses, 7:30 p.m.
For a long time, if you saw a Guns N' Roses concert, you were watching a band that bared little resemblance to the Guns N' Roses you remembered. That's changed, thankfully: Guns N’ Roses have been touring with something resembling the band’s classic lineup. After years of touring with ringers, Axl Rose reunited with Slash and Duff McKagan for a huge and lucrative tour in 2016, and they've kept that momentum going on subsequent tours.
Justin Barney’s From The Music Desk Pick: The Flaming Lips @ Generac Power Stage, 9:45 p.m.
When I was in high school I went to someone older and wiser than me and I asked, “What band puts on the best live show.” The answer was quick and unequivocal, “The Flaming Lips.” They happened to be playing Summerfest later that month. But I worked as a dishwasher at The Steakout in Greenfield. My boss let me go early and I showed up in my grimy dish shoes and back-of-house whites, smelling like garbage and old fries. That night they started the show by blasting confetti cannons. Wayne Coyne brought out a pair of hands that were half the size of himself that shot lasers into the audience. He rolled out over us in the bubble ball. That old head that I talked to was right. And I haven't missed a Flaming Lips show in MKE since.
Kenny Perez picks: Lunay @ Miller Lite Oasis, 10 p.m.
Reggaeton is a Latin music genre that is setting the world a blaze. Streaming numbers for the top Latin acts are well into the hundreds of millions and Lunay is no exception. At the young age of 20, Lunay has garnered the respect of the elder Reggaeton class. Saturday, he will be the first ever Reggaeton act to headline the Miller Lite Oasis. Also on the stage is the Milwaukee duo Gego Y Nony, Browns Crews and me playing the break. What a way to close out Summerfest; I cannot wait.
Tarik Moody picks: Shiela E @ Johnson Controls World Sound Stage, 8 p.m.
Besides having a crush on Sheila since I was in middle school, Sheila E is a force to be reckoned with. When I first saw her perform, I wanted to learn to play drums. Not only she is a world-class percussionist, she collaborated with Prince on one of my favorite songs “The Glamorous Life.”
Here's the complete Summerfest schedule for Saturday, Sept. 18
American Family Insurance Amphitheater
6 p.m. – Guns N’ Roses
Miller Lite Oasis
8 p.m. – Gego Y Nony
10 p.m. – Lunay
BMO Harris Pavilion
8 p.m. – Neal Francis
9:30 p.m. – Black Pumas
UScellular Connection Stage
4 p.m. – Poi Dog Pondering
8 p.m. – Beatallica
10 p.m. – Turkuaz featuring Jerry Harrison & Adrien Belew
Generac Power Stage
6 p.m. – JEFF The Brotherhood
8 p.m. – Thurston Moore
10 p.m. – The Flaming Lips
Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard
4 p.m. – CAM
8 p.m. – Dillon Carmichael
10 p.m. – Scotty McCreery
Uline Warehouse
1 p.m. – Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound
4:30 p.m. – Galactic
8 p.m. – Neon Trees
Johnson Controls World Sound Stage
6:45 p.m. – Moon City Masters
8 p.m. – Shiela E.
JoJo’s Martini Lounge
1 p.m. – Mission Accomplished
4 p.m. – Katie Mack and the Moan
8 p.m. – Cheap Shots
Klement’s Sausage & Beer Garden
Noon – Jon Dietz & The Twin Lakes Trio
3:30 p.m. – Bryan O’Donnell Band
7 p.m. – Steve Meisner Polka Band
How to get in free today: Just show up between noon and 7 p.m.
Summerfest has extended the hours for its Fan Appreciation Day, meaning anybody who shows up by 7 p.m. can get in to the festival for free. To sweeten the deal, Summerfest is also giving away free tickets to next year's festival to the first 30,000 people who enter.