On Sunday, October 19th, the Las Vegas Festival Grounds were packed with thousands of people well before the first act, camping out by the main stage barricade under the bright desert sun. The air already thrummed with excitement, people dressed in vaudeville outfits and discussing discographies.
The emo-pop punk festival slowly drew half a hundred thousand by night, with the grounds packed shoulder-to-shoulder, but the camaraderie was clear: teens, twenty-somethings, and even parents decked in band tees all eagerly waited for their favorite headliners to take the stage.
Winding back a bit and inserting myself into this story, I first arrived at the festival at 10 AM with a VIP ticket, meaning I'd spend most of my day looking at bands from the left side in a separate area. As the first band, the Summer Set, took the stage, I was right up against the barricade, soaking it all in.
A sunlit start and a souvenir in hand at 2025 When We Were Young
Their upbeat pop-rock really set a friendly tone for the day. Even though I didn't know them before, I still lightly moved along as they ran through songs from their newer albums. The crowd was still settling in, grabbing drinks or snacks, and once they finished, I ducked away to briefly go shopping.
I ended up buying only one piece of merch: the white festival tee with a rat mascot on the front and the full lineup printed on the back for $50. It notably didn't include the two acts added a week prior and still included the dropped Sleeping with Sirens, but no typos like last year, at least.
Next up was Mayday Parade, one of my favorites heading into the fest. Their set felt like a burst of pure emo nostalgia. As soon as the first chords of "Jamie All Over" rang out, dozens of voices around me were yelling every lyric back at the stage.
Lead singer Derek Sanders' voice was as powerful as ever, and the younger fans around me jumped and danced wildly. Various animated music videos and visualizers played behind each song, hitting all the crowd-pleasers from their catalog. My favorite in particular was "Black Cat," which had extra punchiness in the live environment.
The mood shifted a bit for the Story So Far. Their fast-paced pop-punk sound got the pit moving, though I wasn't as familiar with their songs. It was a nice contrast to Mayday Parade's anthemic style: rawer and a little edgier, but still 100% in the emo/pop-punk spirit of the festival.
After those sets, I took a longer break to recharge. I caught half of Plain White T's set on the side Allianz stage while grabbing a hot dog and lemonade (which cost a whopping $30). While there, I got to sing along to the soft "1, 2, 3, 4" and a surprising cover of Fall Out Boy's "Dance, Dance."
It was fun to see the gap between their poppy, clean vocals and the heavier bands, but it all flowed together on the schedule. I even encountered other attendees from the main stage, who all mutually agreed that these guys should've been up there instead of Yellowcard.
I dashed back to the main stage for Simple Plan, pushing through to get back to my sister, who stayed in the pit. The band played tracks like "Welcome to My Life" and the Scooby-Doo theme, with the energy sky-high through their mini-class reunion of a pop-punk set.
At one point, amid the confetti flooding my sight every 10 minutes, a red guitar pick flew from the stage straight into my chest. Nobody else noticed, giving me the chance to reach down and grab it. Adorned with a skull and the line "shred 'till you're dead!" I held onto it like a trophy as one more memory to prove I was really there.
Next in the lineup was All Time Low. I mostly knew the band for their radio hit "Monsters," but their other tracks were enjoyable. The crowd was seemingly loving it, though the band didn't find it to be enough. We were scolded for not moshing during "Monsters," dampening the mood for the rest of the set.
By late afternoon, the Offspring hit the stage, and marked a point where every artist forward I would already know most of the songs. The vocalist, Dexter Holland, had a sneer that reminded me of those old music videos, and the riffs were blasting just like in their prime.
Everyone around me knew the words and sang like it was the '90s all over again. It was a shot of pure punk joy for this part of the crowd, with their old material still holding up well live. The "original" white guy from "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" even made an appearance onstage at the end of their set.
When Weezer finally took the main stage in the evening, I was over the moon. They were one of the acts I'd been most excited about. The Rivers Cuomo-led quartet kept it cool: no elaborate theatrics, no talking to the crowd between songs, just sharp musicianship and melodies that felt like old friends.
They played hit after hit, though they didn't play a single song newer than 2008's red album. I took a selfie of the crowd behind me at this point, and the tens of thousands dancing had no end in sight. I couldn't see much in front, though, which brings me to what I spent the next three hours focused on improving.
Just before Weezer started, a very tall guy (think 7-foot giant) who had been lounging at the barricade suddenly stood up with an iPad to record with, which led me (5-foot-6) to practically not see the band at all.
I tried desperately to get away from him, though he and the crowd around me didn't budge. For the two hours that Blink-182 played on the next stage over, I gradually shifted inch by inch to the right, and eventually found myself in a better position with him only blocking the left-third of my view.
Finally, Panic! at the Disco closed out the night as the headliner. I had a preexisting love for Panic!, so this was huge for me. They played the entirety of A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, culminating in the almost-riotous favorite "I Write Sins Not Tragedies."
The song returned for a second time at the end, as Brendon grinned and introduced "his oldest friend" Spencer Smith, who hopped behind the kit for the encore. The crowd went absolutely nuts as it was Spencer's second time (the first was the day before) playing with them in 12 years.
Even more surreal was that Panic! slipped in "New Perspective," a deep cut omitted from the fest the night before. It was like a reward for being there on Sunday: a truly special song that most casual listeners wouldn't have expected. The mix of lights, pyrotechnics, fireworks, and a few more of your favorite things made that final set feel like the perfect close to the day.
Where nostalgia met now
In between all the bands, the whole festival vibe kept me on my toes. During slower moments (for instance, while a Pink Stage act was on and the nearby 7-Eleven Stage had a break), lots of people, including me, plopped down on the ground to rest, though you never really escaped the music.
Even seated, I could hear Avril Lavigne and Blink-182 blasting from around the grounds, and it felt like the whole park was a single buzzing block party. Looking back, it's clear that When We Were Young 2025 was a massive win for emo/pop-punk fans.
Classic artists like Weezer, Panic!, Mayday, Offspring, and Plain White T's gave fans exactly what they wanted, and yet the festival also welcomed newer heavy bands on side stages to broaden the scene. At every turn, I heard the crowd sing-along with stars of their youth, proving once more that these songs are still alive in all of us.
When the night ended, I walked away with ringing ears and a full heart, thinking that if this is any sign, emo nostalgia isn't just a relic of our teenage years: it's very much alive and well at When We Were Young.