Genre

Reggae Concerts in San Diego

4 shows coming up. Other sounds below.

Upcoming Shows

Thu Dec 318:00 PM
Dubbestwith Tribal SeedsThe Sound Del Mar
Tickets

3 shows from January 17 onShow fewer

Sun Jan 178:00 PM
Pepperwith Bumpin UgliesNewThe Sound Del Mar
Tickets
Sat Jun 58:00 PM
Ocean AlleySOMA Midway District
Tickets
Sat Jul 106:30 PM
Stick Figurewith The ElovatersNorth Island Credit Union Amphitheatre Chula Vista
Tickets

San Diego reggae has a hometown address, and it is Ocean Beach. Slightly Stoopid formed there in 1994, and its members were still in high school when Sublime's Bradley Nowell signed them to his label. Tribal Seeds started up in San Diego in 2005, and the San Diego Reader has named those two bands, along with the Devastators, as the acts that made the city matter in reggae. Younger OB bands keep coming up behind them.

The Rooms With the Crowd

The Belly Up Tavern is the closest thing to a home stage. Talent buyer Mac Falk pushed the club past its blues roots toward reggae in the 1980s, Toots and the Maytals played the first of many Belly Up shows in 2003, and the 50th anniversary run in 2024 included Steel Pulse and Black Uhuru. The Los Angeles Times marked that birthday by calling the club a stronghold for reggae, blues and roots music.

SOMA handles the big hometown nights. Slightly Stoopid sold out an all ages show there in 2012, and the room keeps booking reggae on Sports Arena Boulevard. The Sound in Del Mar, run by the same company as the Belly Up, picks up more North County dates. In summer, touring bands play outdoors at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay, The Rady Shell and the North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre in Chula Vista.

The Belly Up is a short walk from the Solana Beach station on the Coaster. Evening trains are limited, so check the schedule before you count on one to get home.