Throughout the last decade, All Things Go Music Festival has taken over the indie-pop space – after celebrating its 10 year anniversary and expanding to New York City last year, the DMV-born festival had another incredible year last month, expanding from two to three days for the first time in both NYC and its original location, now hosted at Merriweather Post Pavillion in Columbia, Maryland. In addition, 2025 saw ATG go international with a third location in Toronto, Canada, and the festival was available to stream globally on Amazon Music for the first time in its history. For a second year in a row, V returned to the beloved festival’s first and largest location to catch an incredible lineup full of established icons, rising stars, and several V alums across genres. 

Noah Kahan

Folk-pop singer-songwriter Noah Kahan is known for his lyricism – but at All Things Go, it was clear that his live vocals and stage presence are just as strong. The Vermont native was the sole male headliner at the women-led festival, and his appreciation for the festival’s ethos was evident as he took the stage Friday night. From start to finish, his set was chock full of hits like “All My Love,” “She Calls Me Back,” “Dial Drunk,” and “Forever.”

About halfway through his performance, Kahan shocked fans by somehow quickly appearing on a B stage outside the venue’s pavilion, facing the front of the massive lawn section. There, he sang the somber but uplifting “Call Your Mom,” which he dedicated to the late 14-year-old content creator Zuza Beine, who died of cancer about a week before the festival. 

With not a dry eye in the audience, Kahan returned to the main stage for the remainder of his set, closing out with none other than “Stick Season,” the song that solidified him as a household name, in a euphoric moment of community amongst the crowd.

Clairo

2017 saw Clairo’s transformation from budding bedroom pop artist to overnight sensation with the release of her hits “Pretty Girl” and “Flaming Hot Cheetos.” But despite her quick success, she still appeared shy and timid while onstage in her first few performances back then. Nearly a decade later, it’s hard to believe Clairo is the same artist. While her signature charm (no pun intended) remains the same, she exudes self-confidence in a brand-new way compared to her early days.

Clairo and her band entered with an extended intro set to Wendy Rene’s 1964 track “After Laughter (Comes Tears),” complete with red wine drinking, as she took the second-to-last slot on Saturday’s main stage. Her buttery-smooth voice complimented her effortlessly-cool stage presence, performing tracks from her stunning third studio album Charm like “Second Nature” and “Add Up My Love,” as well as early hits like “4EVER” and “Flaming Hot Cheetos.” As she neared the end of her set with “Bags,” perhaps her career’s highlight thus far, the crowd’s excitement grew and remained until she closed with “Sofia,” the queer anthem on her debut album Immunity.

Lucy Dacus

Richmond, Virginia native Lucy Dacus is a returning ATG alum in several respects. She played the festival in 2022, back when it was a one-day affair in its first year moving out of DC proper and upsizing to the Merriweather venue. In 2023, Dacus took the stage again as part of boygenius, the indie-rock trio she shares with Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker. Now, she returns to headline as a solo act, a DMV homecoming of sorts, as part of her “Forever Is A Feeling” tour.

Dacus’ set was primarily comprised of tracks from her new album, but she also played hits like “Hot & Heavy,” “VBS,” and of course, “Night Shift.” As part of her headlining tour this year, she became ordained to perform weddings, and married several couples each night – totaling 154 overall throughout 2025 – while playing her sweet love song “Best Guess.” At ATG, 16 couples took the stage to slow dance and receive red roses from Dacus as she recited a brief ceremony mid-song.

In another highlight, Dacus covered “Chicago,” Sufjan Stevens’ 2005 track from which the festival derived its name – the song opens with “I fell in love again / All things go, all things go” and the phrase is later repeated as the song’s hook. 

Maude Latour

Rising indie-pop darling and V alum Maude Latour is also a familiar face on the ATG lineup – like Dacus, she appeared at the festival in 2022. Though the freshly-26-year-old may be early in her career, currently opening for Alex Warren, it was clear she found her niche at the Chrysalis Stage. As she performed tracks like “Cyclone” and “Lola,” an electric energy coursed through the sweeping crowd that gathered under the bright sun to watch her set on Sunday – a crowning achievement for an afternoon slot away from the main stage at any music festival. 

Rachel Chinouriri

Back at the main stage, Rachel Chinouriri was holding down the fort as another rising star in the indie-pop sphere who fits ATG’s core audience perfectly. The UK native was originally slated to perform at the festival last year, but was forced to pull out of several other North American festivals and her tour alongside Remi Wolf, citing financial constraints. After her first-ever US headlining tour this past spring, Chinouriri was back and better than ever at ATG, cementing her status as one to watch within the genre. She stood out as especially interactive with the crowd, performing tracks including her viral, infectious hit “All I Ever Asked.”

Role Model

Role Model has graced both V Man’s July 2025 digital cover and the ATG stage this year – and that’s just scratching the surface. He also joined longtime friend Gracie Abrams on a massive arena tour and made his SNL debut, all while gearing up for his own European headlining tour and an acting role alongside none other than Natalie Portman and Mark Ruffalo in Lena Dunham’s upcoming Netflix rom-com.

The artist’s viral success this year is due in part to his hit “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out,” in which he chooses from either a group of lucky fans or a wide range of famous friends to invite onstage as his “Sally” of the night at live performances. With quite the stacked roster at ATG, the incredibly-talented Griff was the lucky girl in question. The selection also carried a deeper weight – the London-born singer took over his opening slot for a few of Abrams’ tour dates due to scheduling conflicts while shooting Dunham’s film. Knowing the crowd initially expected Role Model, Griff performed “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” each night with her signature vocal runs and opt-ups, proving herself more than worthy of standing in his shoes. The moment that ensued was adorable and crowd-pleasing, much like the entirety of his set.

Doechii

Fresh off her historic Grammy win for Best Rap Album where she became the third woman ever to emerge victorious in the category, calling V alum Doechii a force to be reckoned with feels like an understatement. The inimitable “Swamp Princess” truly stands in a league of her own, and she intends to use her success as an indicator to inspire other artists – as she tweeted in response to reaching the Billboard Hot 100 charts for the first time as a solo artist, “My first solo entry is a satire about one of the lowest points in my life and has no hook. A message to smaller artists: Create whatever art you want; there’s really no rules.”

That sentiment rang true as she took the stage, adorned in tropical decor themed after Doechii’s signature essence honoring her Tampa, Florida roots. The entire crowd was visibly in awe as she performed hits from her award-winning 2024 mixtape “ALLIGATOR BITES NEVER HEAL,” like “DENIAL IS A RIVER,” “CATFISH,” and “NISSAN ALTIMA.” Other standout moments included her viral hit “Anxiety,” “Nosebleeds,” and “Alter Ego,” her collaboration with JT. 

Kesha

The festival’s third and final day concluded with none other than V77 cover star Kesha, who has guided herself through a remarkable and resilient journey throughout the last decade since severing ties with producer Dr. Luke in a legal battle that ended in late 2023. Although she has been releasing work throughout this time, her latest musical era finds her officially free to create music under her own label as an independent artist. Her ATG set beautifully blended this brand-new chapter with her beloved hits, dating back to 2009.

After nearing the end of an incredibly dynamic pop performance, Kesha slowed things down to sing her 2017 ballad “Praying,” released in response to the artist’s ongoing conflicts with the producer at the time. Always a breathtaking moment when performed live, this festival was no different – although Kesha told the crowd to bear with her as she was losing her voice, she sounded as raw and honest as ever, in line with the festival’s message.