As we head into 2025, many artists are getting ready to head back out on the road in what promises to be an exciting year of concerts.
While there are many great tour packages on deck, there will always be speculation on what the next big lineup will be.
Here is a list of five tours that need to happen in the near future.
Top 5 must-have rock tours for the near future
No. 5 - Nickelback and Creed
Nickelback and Creed are two bands that everyone pretends to hate, but we all know they are singing along to every word when they are on the radio. In their prime, both bands were criticized for their “generic” and “commercial” sound that dominated the rock airwaves all across the country.
Their music has aged gracefully, however, and demand to see both artists in concert is now at an all-time high. With Creed on the heels of a very successful reunion tour and Nickelback riding high with new music of their own, a trek would sure to send shockwaves through the music industry.
No. 4 - Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains
The Seattle grunge scene took the music industry by storm in the 1990s with Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and Nirvana leading the way. Over 30 years later, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains are the last bands standing as Soundgarden and Nirvana have disbanded due to the untimely deaths of their lead singers (Alice in Chains lost Layne Staley but have continued touring with William Duvall handling lead vocals with Jerry Cantrell).
Both groups are still firing on all cylinders, releasing new music and touring the world on a large scale. The last time they toured together was way back in 1991 when Pearl Jam was still under the moniker “Mookie Blaylock.” A joint tour is well overdue and would provide a sense of nostalgia and excitement for the biggest fans of the grunge and rock and roll genres.
No. 3 - Guns N’ Roses and Motley Crue
Two of the most controversial and dangerous rock bands of all time, Guns N’ Roses and Motley Crue last teamed up back in 1988 for a handful of dates in North America and Germany. One year later, Izzy Stradlin and Vince Neil were involved in a feud that came to a halt with an incident at the MTV Awards and the bands traded barbs for years. It appears that both bands are now on good terms and Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx has hinted that a tour could happen in the future. With both bands back selling out stadiums worldwide, a tour would make sense and would sure be a hit at the box office.
No. 2 - Iron Maiden and Judas Priest
Two of the pioneers of the new wave of British heavy metal sound, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest last toured together way back in 1980 during the latter’s British Steel Tour. In the 44 years that have followed, they have established themselves as two of the greatest heavy metal bands of all time. Lead vocalists Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson have previously collaborated on “The One You Love to Hate” from Halford’s debut album Resurrection and had plans to record an album together with Ronnie James Dio before the project was scrapped in 2003.
It is worth noting that when Judas Priest toured with Iron Maiden, Dickinson was not yet the lead singer and this would be the first trek that includes both singers on the bill. Despite multiple lineup changes throughout the years, both bands have shown no signs of slowing down and a joint tour would be welcomed by metalheads all over the world.
No. 1 - Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney
The Rolling Stones and The Beatles are two of the greatest bands of all time, and the rivalry between the groups and their fan bases has been well documented. During the bands’ heyday, they never formally performed together in public although John Lennon appeared with the Stones in 1968 for their Rock and Roll Circus film.
With Paul McCartney providing bass on the most recent Rolling Stones album, Hackney Diamonds, back in 2023, it appears that the remaining members of both bands are on good terms which does not put a tour out of the question. While both artists can surely sell out stadiums worldwide, a joint tour between the Stones and Paul McCartney would go down as one of the hottest and most sought-after concert tours of all time.