These are some of the best live shows coming to Leeds that have been hand-picked to help fill your concert calendar for 2025.
This year has been an absolute corker for live performances in the city, and luckily for us the year ahead is looking just as jam-packed.
We've rounded up a list of some of the best gigs in Leeds that you've got to get tickets for during 2025, we apologise in advance for the damage this may cause your bank account.
Sugababes, First Direct Arena
Credit: Publicity Picture
Mutya, Keisha and Siobhán better known as UK girl group Sugababes will be coming to Leeds on Friday 25 October and it's going to be a nostalgic night to remember.
They have accumulated a total six number one singles in the span of five years including ‘Push The Button’ and its infamous line which “I’ve been dropping so many hints and you’re just not getting it”.
These leading ladies have been a UK music staple with ‘Freak Like Me’ and ‘Round Round’ , if you’re going to this you’ll soon be up on your feet busting your best moves.
It’s ‘No Lie’, two of the 2000’s biggest names in music are linking up to put on a tour jam-packed with nothing but hits.
The Jamaican born dancehall act has seen chart success with ‘Temperature’, ‘Got 2 Luv U’ and ‘Get Busy’, Paul has been steadily soundtracking people’s lives since his debut.
Ashanti has her own roster such as ‘Rock Wit U’, ‘Foolish’ and ‘Baby’, the latter single by the New York R&B artist even got an Aitch remix in 2022.
You can get ready to grab your tickets for Sean Paul and Ashanti’s Leeds date HERE.
Mika, Millennium Square
Image: Press image
The Beirut-born, London-raised pop star will headline Millennium Square as part of the Sounds Of The City series.
Mika has released six studio albums to date, the latest being 2023’s ‘Que ta tête fleurisse toujours’.
Mika will take to the stage on Thursday 3 July, with special guests soon to be announced.
You can grab your tickets here via the Millennium Square website.
The Pogues, First Direct Arena
Image: Supplied
The Pogues have announced their first UK tour since the death of former frontman, Shane MacGowan, with Leeds one of just half a dozen cities chosen.
Kicking off the tour right here in Leeds, The Pogues will play at the O2 Academy on Thursday 1 May 2025.
It's going to be an emotional one that's for sure.
Two of the world’s greatest pop-punk bands, Busted and McFly, will be heading to Leeds as part of their unmissable head-to-head tour.
The two groups, which are collectively behind some of the biggest pop-rock hits of the last two decades, will be visiting some of the biggest venues around the UK.
Grab your tickets here for their Leeds gig on 27 September 2025.
Kaiser Chiefs, Temple Newsam
Image: Cal McIntyre
Yorkshire indie rock icons Kaiser Chiefs are set to play their biggest Leeds gig to date at a very special venue.
Next year marks 20 years since the release of their debut album ‘Employment’ and to celebrate, frontman Ricky Wilson and the rest of the group are coming to Temple Newsam.
The huge 20 year celebration is taking place on Saturday 31 May 2025 and sees Kaiser Chiefs and six special guests ready to raise the roof of the historical building next summer.
This one isn't to be missed, and tickets are available here.
Gracie Abrams, First Direct Arena
Image: Press image
Since making her debut in 2019, Gracie Abrams has made a name for herself as one of the most exciting singer-songwriters of her generation.
The rising star has announced the European leg of her headline tour, The Secret of Us Tour, and will play 18 dates kicking off in Madrid in February.
She will be stopping off in Leeds and performing at the First Direct Arena on Tuesday 4 March 2025.
The Wombats aren’t just still going strong - they’re getting better. And honestly? Long may they reign.
The Wombats absolutely tore the roof off the First Direct Arena in Leeds last night, Wednesday 26 March and what a night it was.
From the second they hit the stage it wasn’t just a gig, it was a full-blown indie-pop spectacle, packed with infectious energy, nostalgia, and a whole lot of dancing.
They kicked things off with “Moving to New York,” and honestly? The crowd was in from the first note.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Matthew Murphy’s unmistakable vocals rang through the arena and suddenly, thousands of people were screaming every lyric like it was 2007 all over again. It was one of those moments where you could just feel how much this band still means to people.
Despite the massive venue, The Wombats somehow made it feel intimate. The lights? Pure chaos in the best way - vibrant, colourful, and totally in sync with the band’s wild, bouncy sound.
Murphy’s cheeky banter between songs made it feel less like a polished arena show and more like a jam session with a few thousand of your closest mates.
Setlist-wise, they nailed it. “Let’s Dance to Joy Division” and “Greek Tragedy” had the whole place losing it, while the stripped-down version of “Techno Fan” gave everyone a minute to breathe (and maybe get a little emotional).
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Those quieter moments just made the high-energy choruses hit even harder. It was a rollercoaster - in the best way possible.
Then came the encore. If you thought the crowd was loud before, “Kill the Director” took things to another level. Pure, chaotic indie bliss. The kind of moment you don’t want to end.
Here’s the thing about The Wombats: some might say their older songs hit harder than their newer stuff, but is that just nostalgia talking? Or maybe it’s a generational thing?
Either way, they proved they’re still one of the most exciting live bands out there. They’ve still got the hooks, the humour, and the ability to turn a massive arena into a sweaty, euphoric singalong.
Mumford & Sons add new Leeds show at the First Direct Arena to sell out UK tour
Clementine Hall
Two new arena dates have been added to their forthcoming UK tour, after selling out the entire run within two hours.
Ahead of dropping their fifth studio LP Rushmere at the end of the month, the cult favourite folk-rock outfit announced a brand-new European tour in support of the record, including a limited UK leg.
The now sold-out arena run starts in Europe in November before now arriving in Leeds on Sunday 30 November.
The significance of the band’s return can be found in the title of the new album, as Rushmereis the spot where it all began for the boys: a pond located on Wimbledon Common in south-west London where Marcus Mumford, Ben Lovett and Ted Dwane first hung out.
However, the multi-award-winning acoustic-driven British rockers and folk revivalists are now a trio following the departure of Winston Marshall, who quit the band back in 2021 following controversies surrounding his right-wing beliefs.
Image: Supplied
With that in mind, it’s rather fitting that they have insisted that beyond just a place and a title, Rushmere is alsothebeginning of a new phase.
Following an intense period of creativity, the project was produced by fellow nine-time Grammy winner Dave Cobb and recorded at the famous RCA Studio A in Nashville, as well as in Savannah, Georgia and back home at Marcus’ studio in Devon.
The album itself drops on this Friday 28 March and judging by the little that we’ve heard so far, they’ve been well worth the wait.
As for the arena show, tickets will go on sale this Thursday 27 March at 10am.
Best of all, they’re donating £1 from every ticket sold straight to War Child UK – this sort of stuff should be standard for any big act as far as we’re concerned.
Clementine Hall -
30th December 2024 
