After returning from a five-year break last year, Vans Warped Tour is hitting five cities in 2026, including Washington, D.C. (June 13th-14th); Long Beach, California (July 25th-26th); Montreal, Canada (August 21st-22nd); Mexico City (September 12th-13th); and Orlando, Florida (November 14th-15th).
Ahead of the 2026 dates, Heavy Consequence caught up with festival founder Kevin Lyman to discuss Warped Tour’s return last year; the decision to expand to five cities in 2026; the strategy of announcing one band at a time; the legacy of the tour’s original run; the financial concerns of staging a major festival these days; and more.
Now that Warped Tour is back, Lyman sees the festival as having a bright future, telling us, “We’re kind of playing the long game now. Warped’s probably gonna be around for a little bit. I’m enjoying it, I’m re-energized, and I’ve got good people around me.”
While some festivals have taken issue with bands making political statements from the stage in recent years, Lyman says that the music acts at Warped Tour are free to speak their mind.
“It’s their 30 minutes or 40 minutes,” explains Lyman. “I think Warped has always been a place for counter-opinions. We used to be able to have PETA there, and we can have SPAM as a partner. Punk could have opposing views in the same place… Now, I would never want a band to go up there and preach straight hate or racism. They would never be welcome in my world. But you can have an opposing view. Our fans are smart enough to make their own choices and make their own decisions when they leave that parking lot.”
Check out our video interview with Kevin Lyman above, and pick up Warped Tour tickets to Washington, D.C. here; Long Beach here; Montreal here; Mexico City here; and Orlando here.
Trouble viewing the video above? Watch on YouTube.