NCAA Tournament Fever Continues With March Madness Music Festival in Indy this Weekend

The calendar may say April, but March Madness continues in Indianapolis this weekend. The NCAA Tournament has reached its Final Four round and will crown a champion at Lucas Oil Stadium by Monday night.
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The calendar may say April, but March Madness continues in Indianapolis this weekend. The NCAA Tournament has reached its Final Four round and will crown a champion at Lucas Oil Stadium by Monday night. That's not the only event fans can take advantage of, however, as the March Madness Music Festival is set to invade White River State Park from Friday to Sunday.

This year's festival is boasting a big bill, too. Imagine Dragons, Rihanna and Zac Brown Band will headline each respective day, providing a little taste of something for everyone's musical palate. Other performers that will grace the stage include Weezer, Lady Antebellum, Passion Pit, Bleachers, Cold War Kids, Kacey Musgraves and Cole Swindell.

Like every year, the festival will be free, ticketless and open to the public. Each day will take on a different moniker and sponsor, with AT&T, Coca-Cola and Capital One all endorsing the three-day affair. The AT&T Block Party will be held on Friday, Coke Zero Countdown on Saturday and Capital One JamFest on Sunday. The AT&T Block Party will run from 3-10pm, Coke Zero Countdown from noon-9:30pm and Capital One JamFest from 2-10pm.

A free festival will be a great deal for those in Indy since Final Four tickets are still pretty expensive on the secondary market. The current average price for Final Four tickets on the secondary market is $972.73, now the second most expensive Final Four since 2011.

The 2015 installment offers the most diverse list of performers yet, too. Last year, the March Madness Music Festival was held at Reunion Park in Dallas and featured Jason Aldean and Tim McGraw as headlines over the first two days. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played its final day, putting an end to festival that flaunted a country and rock-heavy lineup. The addition of acts like Rihanna and Passion Pit has placed a more pop and electronic influence on this year's concert series.

Each headliner will be promoting new music in Indy this weekend. Imagine Dragons released Smoke + Mirrors in February, while Rihanna and Zac Brown Band prepare to drop their forthcoming records later this year. Zac Brown Band releases Jekyll + Hyde on April 28 while Rihanna is slated to announce a release date for her eighth studio effort soon.

Tours are also in the works for all three artists. Imagine Dragons' subsequent Smoke + Mirrors Tour kicks off in Chile on April 12 and heads stateside beginning in late May. Zac Brown's stadium tour across North America begins at the end of month. Rihanna is rumored to be plotting touring coordinates with hip-hop heavyweight Kanye West for a joint tour sometime this year.

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