It’s been a year and a half since Kendrick Lamar headlined the Bay Area, and that show at the Fox Theater in Oakland — a set heavy on songs from his wildly creative To Pimp a Butterfly album — sold out in about 10 seconds. I know, because I was sitting at a gate in the Detroit airport, on my laptop with a very weak wi-fi connection, refreshing and refreshing in vain. (To the attendants of Delta flight 1658: I’m sorry for the loud swearing.)
Kendrick’s week-old album DAMN. is being framed as the Compton native’s back-to-basics album — and on Aug. 4, he comes back to Oakland for a tour stop at the Oracle Arena, where he was last seen in 2013, opening for Kanye West’s Yeezus tour. Tickets will sell out quickly, but as always, there’s some presale trickery to be aware of if you’re trying to buy tickets.
Starting Tuesday, April 25, at 10am PDT, tickets go into presale right here for anyone paying with an American Express card. You don’t have to be a cardholder to buy tickets, but you do have to pay with an AM/EX, so feel free to work out a deal with your parent’s coworker where the give you their card info. and you pay them back.
Ticket onsale to the general public goes up here on Friday, April 28, at 10am PDT. Based on anecdotal evidence, I’ve heard of friends getting better seats through the Live Nation app, so you could keep that open as well as your browser window.
You might also want to keep your eyes peeled in a few places for VIP and meet-and-greet tickets: CID Entertainment and Kendrick’s label Top Dawg Entertainment handled VIP and meet-and-greet tickets last time he came to the Bay Area. No info on their sites or social media feeds yet, but can’t hurt to try if you’re interested.
