PRIMAVERA SOUND 2025: Pop Till You Drop
Photo Credit: Christian Bertrand
Out with some of the old, in with some of the new.
A common theme across this year’s 2025 Primavera Sound in Barcelona was the prevailing power and iconic branding of the pop girlies. Charli XCX, Sabrina Carpenter, and Chappell Roan. The Powerpuff Girls.
While many long-time attendees grumbled at the look toward a new area, others welcomed a fresh, colorful chapter in a festival where pop music has slowly crept from the margins to the mainstage.
The Primavera Sound organizers and talent bookers, while lauded as trendsetters and champions of the underground, are also no fools. We’ve seen the festival in years past ride the wave of rap headliners filling the main stage area (Tyler, the Creator, A$AP Rocky, Meghan Three Stallion, Kendrick, and more). We’ve also seen the festival stay true to its roots in booking Pulp, Depeche Mode, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Tame Imapala, and similar acts both old and new. One thing this year saw, though, was a definite look toward the future in drawing record numbers of Gen Z attendees to see their favorite pop icons.
Pop vs. Underground: A Festival at a Crossroads
Photo Credit: Clara Orozco
As I address in my 2025 Primavera sound review and guide https://www.jonesaroundtheworld.com/future-of-primavera-sound/, chatter from fans on socials was often at odds the festival itself in regard to Primavera losings its cool or selling its soul.
Each year at Primavera Sound, there’s a noticeable undercurrent—a shift, subtle or seismic, that reveals something about the current state of music. This year, that shift came with sequins, high-gloss production, and three sold-out headliners who, a few years ago, may not have even been considered for the main stage. Charli XCX, Chappell Roan, and Sabrina Carpenter were certainly the main attraction both in terms of music as well as marketing.
Primavera Sound, long respected for its commitment to underground acts and genre-defying curation, found itself in new territory this year. The pop-forward lineup framed a broader conversation about what it means to be “alternative” in 2025.
I really do think that the appeal of these major acts, while giving the festival a large deal of organic marketing as well as faster sellouts (don’t worry, tickets always pop up in resale waitlist closer to the festival dates), also allow for more experimental booking. With such a longstanding (24 years!) festival that still innovates while hanging on to its roots, I personally don’t mind pop-heavy headliners in order to make the other stages more comfortable and rich in musical diversity.
Charli, Chappell, and Sabrina: Three Perspectives on Modern Pop
Photo Credit: Sharon Lopez
Charli XCX has been orbiting headliner status for years, but BRAT, her latest album, firmly positioned her at the center of this year’s cultural conversation after she filled the Amazon Music stage to capacity last year. Her Primavera set reflected that: energetic, refined, and confident. While still informed by her club-kid, PC Music roots, the performance felt more mainstream-ready than ever—without sacrificing her edge.
Chappell Roan, arguably the festival’s breakout act, delivered a set that balanced humor, theatre, and full-blown pop-star production. Backed by a growing wave of critical acclaim and viral momentum, she emerged not only as a performer but as a personality—a rare blend of camp and vocal prowess that connected deeply with the audience.
Sabrina Carpenter, the former Disney star, brought a sense of polish and poise that resonated with a more traditional pop sensibility. Songs like Espresso and Feather had already become global hits, and Primavera offered a moment of affirmation for her rapid rise. Though her sound is less experimental than Charli’s or Chappell’s, her command of the stage and connection with the audience underscored that Primavera’s crowd is more open than ever to major-label pop delivered with charm and clarity.
It was a little striking to me as a long-time Spain resident but also a foreigner from the US, that many of my local friends either didn’t know of or didn’t understand the massive star power of the Sabrina or Chappell (Charli being a little more euro-centric). However, the new Gen Z dominance of the main stage made it evident that while pop may not dominate the lineup next year, the genre has certainly made itself a Primavera mainstay.
Looking Ahead: What’s Next for Primavera?
Photo Credit: Henry Redcliffe
The inclusion of mainstream pop stars as headliners may unsettle some festival traditionalists, but it aligns with a broader reality: music consumption is more decentralized than ever. Genre borders have eroded, and the distinction between “pop” and “alternative” often has more to do with optics than sound.
I believe that Primavera’s evolution reflects this, and this shift can coexist with the festivals more record-digging, old school indie and electronic crowds that made it special in the first place. Its commitment to booking a wide array of artists remains intact, but the way that balance plays out on the main stages is clearly changing. This year proved that the audience is open to, if not already living that change.
There’s no question that Primavera Sound still values discovery, experimentation, and diversity. What’s different now is that these values are also being applied to the pop space. It seems that future editions may continue down this path, not because it’s trendy, but because it reflects the mix of commercialism with the independent underground that is evident in the modern music industry landscape.
So what do you think? Are you in favor of this shift toward pop stars taking the center stage, or do you think the historically indie acts of years past should be top of the lineup? Let us know in the comments and on socials!
For a broader review of the 2025 Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, you can check out my most recent guide here.
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