Exploring Columbus’ Best Concert Venues & Vibrant Music Scene

Welcome to the lively city of Columbus, Ohio, where the spirit of music fills the air. Nestled in the heartland of America, Columbus boasts a thriving music scene that embraces a wide range of genres and styles. From intimate clubs to historic theaters, the city offers an array of concert venues that cater to diverse tastes. Join us as we explore the best concert venues in Columbus, where memorable performances, passionate crowds and a vibrant musical atmosphere converge. Get ready to discover the hidden gems and iconic stages that make Columbus a destination for unforgettable live music experiences.

Columbus Music Venues

The Schottenstein Center

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For Ohio State Buckeyes fans, the Schottenstein Center is the place to be, as it’s the home of the men’s and women’s basketball teams as well as the men’s hockey team. Opened in 1998, the venue—whose full name is the Value City Arena at The Jerome Schottenstein Center—is located on campus and is the largest arena in the Big Ten, as it seats more than 19,000 for basketball and around 17,000 for hockey. Appropriately, the school’s vocal, robust student fan base has a section known as the Buckeye NutHouse to cheer on their teams. 

When not hosting games, the Schottenstein Center books a steady stream of special events (including WWE SmackDown and Monster Jam) and concerts spanning rock, pop, country, hip-hop and more. In the last few years, local-boys-done-good Twenty One Pilots have had a triumphant homecoming at the venue, while superstar artists such as Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Hall & Oates, Brantley Gilbert, Celine Dion and Ariana Grande have also performed here.

Ohio Stadium

 

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Ohio Stadium—aka the Horseshoe or just the Shoe to locals—is the home of the Ohio State University’s beloved men’s football team. Opened in 1922 with a game against Ohio Wesleyan, the stadium is also the fourth-largest on-campus venue in the U.S., with a current capacity of 102,780. In addition to hosting football in the fall, Ohio Stadium is where Ohio State’s men’s lacrosse team plays its home matches.

The stadium has hosted many major concerts over the years, including gigs by the Rolling Stones, U2, Taylor Swift and Metallica. Ohio Stadium is also the site of the Buckeye Country Superfest, a star-studded country music festival featuring the likes of Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown Band, Miranda Lambert, George Strait and Blake Shelton.

Ohio Theatre

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Located just south of the Ohio Statehouse, the majestic Ohio Theatre originally opened in 1928 as a movie theater that also booked variety shows. Although shuttered in 1969, the venue—which boasts a 21-foot-high chandelier and Spanish-Baroque flourishes—was saved by the nonprofit Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) and booked rock concerts by the Grateful Dead and Alice Cooper, among others. Today, the 2,791-seat theater hosts touring Broadway productions—recent bookings include Wicked, Cats and Miss Saigon—and is home to the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. 

Palace Theatre Columbus

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As with the Ohio Theatre, the nonprofit Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) refurbished and restored the Palace Theatre. Opened in 1926, the 2,695-seat venue in the shadow of LeVeque Tower is a former vaudeville emporium full of opulent flourishes: chandeliers, a sweeping staircase, even a fountain. The Palace Theatre boasts a busy, eclectic slate of concerts and tours. Bookings include musical acts (Kraftwerk, Bob Weir, Chicago), theater (Fiddler on the Roof, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) and other staged productions (The Price Is Right Live!, The Masked Singer National Tour).

EXPRESS LIVE!

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EXPRESS LIVE!, which opened in 2001, is a year-round space that draws veteran performers and up-and-coming acts alike, across all genres: rock, pop, indie, hip-hop, country and everything in between. Located on the outskirts of the bustling Arena District, EXPRESS LIVE! is essentially two concert venues in one. An indoor general-admission concert hall with a seated balcony holds 2,200 people—and offers up not only tasty slices of pizza to hungry concertgoers, but a sizable bar and spacious sight lines to enjoy live acts (Alice Cooper, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Sleater-Kinney). The EXPRESS LIVE! outdoor space is seasonal, meaning it’s open largely in the spring and summer. Spread out on a grassy hill with scattered standing and seating options, it holds 5,700 people. Due to the larger size, this music venue tends to draw bigger acts (Fall Out Boy, Cheap Trick, Wilco, Heart).

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Edited Header Image Courtesy of Kiffer Creveling