June 7: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out David Byrne at Gov Ball<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"Olivia](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-olivia-david-byrne.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Griffin Lotz for Rolling Stone\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tThe legendary surprise that kicked off a summer full of \u2019em. Olivia Rodrigo\u2019s headlining performance on the second night of Governors Ball<\/a> was already one of the most fun, high-energy festival sets of the year \u2014 and then she brought out former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne for 1983\u2019s \u201cBurning Down the House.\u201d Trading vocals on an absurdly catchy art-pop classic is one thing; nailing the synchronized choreography that goes with it is another. Rodrigo and Byrne did both to wild cheers from the all-ages crowd, grooving down the catwalk side by side as if they\u2019d been performing together for years. \u201cHoly shit, that was so cool,\u201d she said as he left the stage. Couldn\u2019t have put it better ourselves. \u2014Simon Vozick-Levinson<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJune 27: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Ed Sheeran at Hyde Park<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"LONDON,](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/themes\/vip\/pmc-rollingstone-2022\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\")
![\"LONDON,](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-olivia-ed-sheeran.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Nicky J Sims\/Getty Images\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tJust a few weeks later, Rodrigo kept the excitement coming when she brought out Ed Sheeran at the London festival BST Hyde Park 2025. \u201cHe\u2019s one of my favorite Brits and one of the best songwriters of all time,\u201d she said before the pair broke into a lovely, acoustic rendition of Sheeran\u2019s first-ever hit, \u201cThe A Team.\u201d (Later, they also shared a quick TikTok <\/a>mash-up of Rodrigo\u2019s \u201cHappier\u201d and Sheeran\u2019s \u201cPerfect\u201d that they\u2019d recorded backstage.) Sheeran wrote about the experience in a heartfelt Instagram caption: \u201cBeen a fan of Olivia\u2019s since Drivers License blew my mind back at the start of 2021\u2026\u00a0 I\u2019m a proper fan. Was gonna go watch the show anyway but she hit me and asked to sing \u2018The A Team\u2019 with her, which was such a buzz. That song turns 15 this year, and I remember playing it to rooms with no one in it in 2010, so to still be playing it to new fans with one of the brightest stars of the next generation is an honour and a privilege.\u201d \u2014Maya Georgi<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJune 29: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Robert Smith at Glastonbury<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"GLASTONBURY,](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-olivia-robert-smith.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Samir Hussein\/WireImage\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tOK, now it\u2019s official: Olivia Rodrigo is the new Queen of the Eighties. O-Rod spent her historic summer-festival rampage taking the stage to the Go-Gos\u2019 \u201cWe Got the Beat,\u201d but she really took the prize at Glastonbury, when she stunned the crowd by bringing out the Cure\u2019s Robert Smith to duet on \u201cJust Like Heaven\u201d and \u201cFriday I\u2019m In Love.\u201d Goth idea, right? \u201cHe\u2019s perhaps the best songwriter to come out of England,\u201d she announced. \u201cHe is a Glastonbury legend and a personal hero of mine!\u201d Cure freaks everywhere loved seeing Robert have this much fun onstage, trading verses and grinning over at her as he sang, \u201cI\u2019ll run away with you!\u201d She\u2019s a longtime Cure superfan \u2014 who can forget the footage of teen Olivia in the car belting \u201cBoys Don\u2019t Cry\u201d? \u2014 so both stars brought pure enthusiasm. She even posted a backstage photo<\/a> of them doing shots together, which was so American of her. It was just like a dream. \u2014Rob Sheffield<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJuly 6: Sabrina Carpenter Brings out Duran Duran at Hyde Park<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"July](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sabrina-and-duran-duran.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Alfredo Flores*\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tHalfway through her set at BST Hyde Park, Sabrina Carpenter had an unusual request for her audience: howl at the moon. Thousands of cries echoed beneath the London sky, as Carpenter stood smiling. \u201cI\u2019m going to need you guys to put that howling to good use,\u201d she told the audience. Would this be a sultry cover of Ozzy Osbourne\u2019s \u201cBark at the Moon?\u201d A pop rendition of Warren Zevon\u2019s \u201cWerewolves of London?\u201d Nope, even better: \u201cHungry Like the Wolf<\/a>,\u201d with a surprise appearance from Duran Duran themselves. Simon Le Bon showed up in his signature white blazer and traded vocals with Carpenter, with John Taylor on bass. If there\u2019s one thing we know about Carpenter, it\u2019s that she loves music history<\/a> \u2014 and the Eighties are no exception. Here\u2019s hoping she brings out Tears for Fears next. \u2014Angie Martoccio<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJuly 11: Drake Brings Out Lauryn Hill at Wireless<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"LONDON,](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-drake-lauryn-hill.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Simone Joyner\/Getty Images\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tWhen Drake headlined all three nights<\/a> of London\u2019s Wireless Festival, it was an opportunity to show off some new moves and a new approach in the wake of a certain beef <\/a>you may have heard about. It was also an opportunity to bring out a shitload of guests, including 21 Savage, Rema, Vanessa Carlton, Bryson Tiller, Giv\u0113on, and PartyNextDoor. Arguably the most exciting cameo, though, came from Ms. Lauryn Hill, who performed her 1998 classic \u201cEx-Factor.\u201d The song segued into Drake\u2019s \u201cNice For What,\u201d the 2018 hit that samples \u201cEx-Factor,\u201d providing a nice full-circle moment. The crowd loved it\u00a0\u2014 which was especially good to see after delays at Essence Fest<\/a> forced Hill to take the stage during the wee hours and perform to a nearly empty Superdome earlier in the month.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJuly 20: Zach Bryan Brings Out Bruce Springsteen at MetLife<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"EAST](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-zach-bryan-bruce.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Taylor Hill\/Getty Images\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tZach Bryan and Bruce Springsteen have appeared together before<\/a>, including on the cover of Rolling Stone<\/em>\u2019s 2024 Musicians on Musicians<\/a> issue, where Bryan talked<\/a> about how he and his buddies like to go to bars and dial up \u201cBorn in the U.S.A.\u201d a couple hundred times in a row on the jukebox. (\u201cThis is crazy, my man,\u201d Springsteen replied.) This summer, when Bryan played three nights at New Jersey\u2019s MetLife Stadium, Springsteen popped up again to duet on \u201cAtlantic City\u201d and Bryan\u2019s own \u201cRevival,\u201d in a moment that reinforced the deep kinship they share as songwriters. Maybe it\u2019s not exactly the world\u2019s biggest surprise to see these two guys join together at this point, but it sure feels like the stuff of Jersey legend when they do. \u2014S.V.L.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJuly 25: Bleachers Bring Out Rufus Wainwright at Newport<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"Jack](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-bleachers-rufus-wainwright.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Sachyn Mital\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tDuring Bleachers\u2019 headlining set on the first night of this year\u2019s Newport Folk Festival<\/a>, Jack Antonoff brought out a stream of guests<\/a>, including Hayley Williams, Jeff Tweedy, Weyes Blood, Waxahatchee, and folk singer Dan Reeder. But the most surprising cameo was from Rufus Wainwright, who was not even booked to perform at the festival that weekend. Wainwright, 52, came out to perform an elegiac rendition of Bob Dylan\u2019s \u201cNot Dark Yet\u201d after trading verses with Antonoff on the Bleachers song \u201c45.\u201d It was unexpected, but by the time Wainwright took the second verse about \u201cpraying at the Nineties\u201d and belted the chorus, he had made the 2020 song his own.\u00a0 \u2014Jonathan Bernstein<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nJuly 31: Gracie Abrams Brings Out Robyn at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"July](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-gracie-robyn.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Pooneh Ghana\/Lollapalooza\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\t
This year, Gracie Abrams leveled up to the mainstage at Lollapalooza after first playing the festival in 2022. Back then, on a smaller stage and at an earlier time, Abrams performed a cover <\/a>of Robyn\u2019s 2010 hit \u201cDancing On My Own.\u201d Abrams invited the Swedish pop queen herself to sing the track this year, describing it as \u201cmy favorite song of all time, ultimately the best song ever written.\u201d (We agree, give or take<\/a> a few.) The two singers delivered a dazzling, symbiotic performance of the song, bringing all the heartsick emotions and spinning around each other as they hit each note. It was one of the highlights of the entire Lollapalooza weekend, and of Abrams\u2019 career. In an Instagram post, Abrams addressed Robyn directly: \u201cYou have magic powers and by some miracle you are also generous enough to have shared them with us last night\u2026 Thank you for making my favorite music.\u201d \u2014M.G.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nAug. 1: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Weezer at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"Aug.](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-olivia-weezer.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Pooneh Ghana\/Lollapalooza\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\tOlivia Rodrigo has been a Weezer fan forever, and she has the photos to prove it. On Monday, just after Weezer joined her onstage to play \u201cBuddy Holly\u201d and \u201cSay It Ain\u2019t So\u201d for her headlining set at Lollapalooza<\/a>, Rodrigo shared a photo<\/a> of herself as a tiny kid, smiling from ear-to-ear in a Weezer T-shirt, and revealed the band was actually her first concert back then. \u201cthank u to everyone who came out and thank u @weezer for still making me this excited all these years later!!!\u201d she posted in the caption. Weezer, meanwhile, seemed just as delighted by the whole thing, commenting on the post, \u201cFull circle moment and an absolute honor, thank you.\u201d \u2014Julyssa Lopez<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n- \n
\nAug. 3: Sabrina Carpenter Brings Out Earth, Wind, & Fire at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t![\"Aug.](\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/legend-collabs-sabrina-EWF.jpg?w=300\")
\n\t\t\t\t\tImage Credit: Alfredo Flores\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\n\t\u201cWe can just let loose, right?\u201d Sabrina Carpenter told her packed Lollapalooza crowd on the festival\u2019s closing night. \u201cWe can just groove.\u201d The superstar found a legendary group that could match her effervescent, perpetually cheery take on pop: Earth, Wind & Fire. Members of the funk-soul outfit, including singer Philip Bailey and his soaring falsetto, proved their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame status, delivering \u201cLet\u2019s Groove\u201d and \u201cSeptember\u201d with the same upbeat ferociousness as when those songs first came out four decades ago. Carpenter chimed in with back-up vocals, but wisely and deferentially ceded the stage to the veterans \u2014Jason Newman<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n
\t<\/p>\n
\n\tThe legendary surprise that kicked off a summer full of \u2019em. Olivia Rodrigo\u2019s headlining performance on the second night of Governors Ball<\/a> was already one of the most fun, high-energy festival sets of the year \u2014 and then she brought out former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne for 1983\u2019s \u201cBurning Down the House.\u201d Trading vocals on an absurdly catchy art-pop classic is one thing; nailing the synchronized choreography that goes with it is another. Rodrigo and Byrne did both to wild cheers from the all-ages crowd, grooving down the catwalk side by side as if they\u2019d been performing together for years. \u201cHoly shit, that was so cool,\u201d she said as he left the stage. Couldn\u2019t have put it better ourselves. \u2014Simon Vozick-Levinson<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tJust a few weeks later, Rodrigo kept the excitement coming when she brought out Ed Sheeran at the London festival BST Hyde Park 2025. \u201cHe\u2019s one of my favorite Brits and one of the best songwriters of all time,\u201d she said before the pair broke into a lovely, acoustic rendition of Sheeran\u2019s first-ever hit, \u201cThe A Team.\u201d (Later, they also shared a quick TikTok <\/a>mash-up of Rodrigo\u2019s \u201cHappier\u201d and Sheeran\u2019s \u201cPerfect\u201d that they\u2019d recorded backstage.) Sheeran wrote about the experience in a heartfelt Instagram caption: \u201cBeen a fan of Olivia\u2019s since Drivers License blew my mind back at the start of 2021\u2026\u00a0 I\u2019m a proper fan. Was gonna go watch the show anyway but she hit me and asked to sing \u2018The A Team\u2019 with her, which was such a buzz. That song turns 15 this year, and I remember playing it to rooms with no one in it in 2010, so to still be playing it to new fans with one of the brightest stars of the next generation is an honour and a privilege.\u201d \u2014Maya Georgi<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tOK, now it\u2019s official: Olivia Rodrigo is the new Queen of the Eighties. O-Rod spent her historic summer-festival rampage taking the stage to the Go-Gos\u2019 \u201cWe Got the Beat,\u201d but she really took the prize at Glastonbury, when she stunned the crowd by bringing out the Cure\u2019s Robert Smith to duet on \u201cJust Like Heaven\u201d and \u201cFriday I\u2019m In Love.\u201d Goth idea, right? \u201cHe\u2019s perhaps the best songwriter to come out of England,\u201d she announced. \u201cHe is a Glastonbury legend and a personal hero of mine!\u201d Cure freaks everywhere loved seeing Robert have this much fun onstage, trading verses and grinning over at her as he sang, \u201cI\u2019ll run away with you!\u201d She\u2019s a longtime Cure superfan \u2014 who can forget the footage of teen Olivia in the car belting \u201cBoys Don\u2019t Cry\u201d? \u2014 so both stars brought pure enthusiasm. She even posted a backstage photo<\/a> of them doing shots together, which was so American of her. It was just like a dream. \u2014Rob Sheffield<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tHalfway through her set at BST Hyde Park, Sabrina Carpenter had an unusual request for her audience: howl at the moon. Thousands of cries echoed beneath the London sky, as Carpenter stood smiling. \u201cI\u2019m going to need you guys to put that howling to good use,\u201d she told the audience. Would this be a sultry cover of Ozzy Osbourne\u2019s \u201cBark at the Moon?\u201d A pop rendition of Warren Zevon\u2019s \u201cWerewolves of London?\u201d Nope, even better: \u201cHungry Like the Wolf<\/a>,\u201d with a surprise appearance from Duran Duran themselves. Simon Le Bon showed up in his signature white blazer and traded vocals with Carpenter, with John Taylor on bass. If there\u2019s one thing we know about Carpenter, it\u2019s that she loves music history<\/a> \u2014 and the Eighties are no exception. Here\u2019s hoping she brings out Tears for Fears next. \u2014Angie Martoccio<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tWhen Drake headlined all three nights<\/a> of London\u2019s Wireless Festival, it was an opportunity to show off some new moves and a new approach in the wake of a certain beef <\/a>you may have heard about. It was also an opportunity to bring out a shitload of guests, including 21 Savage, Rema, Vanessa Carlton, Bryson Tiller, Giv\u0113on, and PartyNextDoor. Arguably the most exciting cameo, though, came from Ms. Lauryn Hill, who performed her 1998 classic \u201cEx-Factor.\u201d The song segued into Drake\u2019s \u201cNice For What,\u201d the 2018 hit that samples \u201cEx-Factor,\u201d providing a nice full-circle moment. The crowd loved it\u00a0\u2014 which was especially good to see after delays at Essence Fest<\/a> forced Hill to take the stage during the wee hours and perform to a nearly empty Superdome earlier in the month.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tZach Bryan and Bruce Springsteen have appeared together before<\/a>, including on the cover of Rolling Stone<\/em>\u2019s 2024 Musicians on Musicians<\/a> issue, where Bryan talked<\/a> about how he and his buddies like to go to bars and dial up \u201cBorn in the U.S.A.\u201d a couple hundred times in a row on the jukebox. (\u201cThis is crazy, my man,\u201d Springsteen replied.) This summer, when Bryan played three nights at New Jersey\u2019s MetLife Stadium, Springsteen popped up again to duet on \u201cAtlantic City\u201d and Bryan\u2019s own \u201cRevival,\u201d in a moment that reinforced the deep kinship they share as songwriters. Maybe it\u2019s not exactly the world\u2019s biggest surprise to see these two guys join together at this point, but it sure feels like the stuff of Jersey legend when they do. \u2014S.V.L.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\tDuring Bleachers\u2019 headlining set on the first night of this year\u2019s Newport Folk Festival<\/a>, Jack Antonoff brought out a stream of guests<\/a>, including Hayley Williams, Jeff Tweedy, Weyes Blood, Waxahatchee, and folk singer Dan Reeder. But the most surprising cameo was from Rufus Wainwright, who was not even booked to perform at the festival that weekend. Wainwright, 52, came out to perform an elegiac rendition of Bob Dylan\u2019s \u201cNot Dark Yet\u201d after trading verses with Antonoff on the Bleachers song \u201c45.\u201d It was unexpected, but by the time Wainwright took the second verse about \u201cpraying at the Nineties\u201d and belted the chorus, he had made the 2020 song his own.\u00a0 \u2014Jonathan Bernstein<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\t \t<\/p>\n \n\tOlivia Rodrigo has been a Weezer fan forever, and she has the photos to prove it. On Monday, just after Weezer joined her onstage to play \u201cBuddy Holly\u201d and \u201cSay It Ain\u2019t So\u201d for her headlining set at Lollapalooza<\/a>, Rodrigo shared a photo<\/a> of herself as a tiny kid, smiling from ear-to-ear in a Weezer T-shirt, and revealed the band was actually her first concert back then. \u201cthank u to everyone who came out and thank u @weezer for still making me this excited all these years later!!!\u201d she posted in the caption. Weezer, meanwhile, seemed just as delighted by the whole thing, commenting on the post, \u201cFull circle moment and an absolute honor, thank you.\u201d \u2014Julyssa Lopez<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n \t<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe can just let loose, right?\u201d Sabrina Carpenter told her packed Lollapalooza crowd on the festival\u2019s closing night. \u201cWe can just groove.\u201d The superstar found a legendary group that could match her effervescent, perpetually cheery take on pop: Earth, Wind & Fire. Members of the funk-soul outfit, including singer Philip Bailey and his soaring falsetto, proved their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame status, delivering \u201cLet\u2019s Groove\u201d and \u201cSeptember\u201d with the same upbeat ferociousness as when those songs first came out four decades ago. Carpenter chimed in with back-up vocals, but wisely and deferentially ceded the stage to the veterans \u2014Jason Newman<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\nJune 27: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Ed Sheeran at Hyde Park<\/h2>\n
June 29: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Robert Smith at Glastonbury<\/h2>\n
July 6: Sabrina Carpenter Brings out Duran Duran at Hyde Park<\/h2>\n
July 11: Drake Brings Out Lauryn Hill at Wireless<\/h2>\n
July 20: Zach Bryan Brings Out Bruce Springsteen at MetLife<\/h2>\n
July 25: Bleachers Bring Out Rufus Wainwright at Newport<\/h2>\n
July 31: Gracie Abrams Brings Out Robyn at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n
This year, Gracie Abrams leveled up to the mainstage at Lollapalooza after first playing the festival in 2022. Back then, on a smaller stage and at an earlier time, Abrams performed a cover <\/a>of Robyn\u2019s 2010 hit \u201cDancing On My Own.\u201d Abrams invited the Swedish pop queen herself to sing the track this year, describing it as \u201cmy favorite song of all time, ultimately the best song ever written.\u201d (We agree, give or take<\/a> a few.) The two singers delivered a dazzling, symbiotic performance of the song, bringing all the heartsick emotions and spinning around each other as they hit each note. It was one of the highlights of the entire Lollapalooza weekend, and of Abrams\u2019 career. In an Instagram post, Abrams addressed Robyn directly: \u201cYou have magic powers and by some miracle you are also generous enough to have shared them with us last night\u2026 Thank you for making my favorite music.\u201d \u2014M.G.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/li>\nAug. 1: Olivia Rodrigo Brings Out Weezer at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n
Aug. 3: Sabrina Carpenter Brings Out Earth, Wind, & Fire at Lollapalooza<\/h2>\n