‘This is home': Green Day kicks off BottleRock with a fierce yet familiar performance
Green Day kicked off BottleRock Napa Valley with an exuberant yet no-frills headlining set that felt like a homecoming for the Bay Area rockers.
Ever-youthful frontman Billie Joe Armstrong, who co-founded the band in 1987 alongside bassist Mike Dirnt, reveled in the band's deep connection to the region, calling out lesser-known cities like Vallejo, Fairfield and American Canyon.
Throughout the performance on Friday, May 23, he frequently turned the microphone toward the audience to let them finish the lyrics.
'This is home,' Armstrong declared, as the crowd eagerly cheered on the East Bay rockers through its 90-minute set.
Much like their 2022 appearance at San Francisco's Outside Lands, however, Green Day's performance was devoid of surprises — no political rants, no radical shifts in the setlist and no pyrotechnic mishaps.
Armstrong, ever the political provocateur, subtly altered the lyrics of 'American Idiot' to reflect his discontent with current politics, singing, 'Don't want to be an American idiot / I'm not part of a MAGA agenda.' But that was about as far as he was willing to push things. Maybe, with a hometown crowd, he didn't feel like he needed to try harder.
Instead, Armstrong, Dirnt and drummer Tré Cool maintained their trademark onstage chemistry, breezing through a performance that has remained largely unchanged for the past two decades. They delivered high-speed renditions of fan favorites like 'Basket Case,' 'Longview' and 'Holiday' with the precision and energy that proved why Green Day remains one of the most reliable rock acts in the industry.
Still, while the band's concerts now resemble well-produced Broadway shows, their energy was undeniably electric.
Green Day balanced nostalgia and newer material, playing crowd-pleasers like 'Brain Stew' and 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' drawing the loudest reactions. Fans sang along to every word, especially during 'Jesus of Suburbia' and 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams.' During 'Bobby Sox,' Armstrong thanked the crowd for their support.
To wind down the evening, Armstrong busted out his acoustic guitar for a hushed rendition of 'Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)' as Cool pranced around tossing confetti. Public Enemy's Flava Flav even briefly joined the trio onstage, but Green Day decidely ended the night with a whimper, not a bang.
Well, that was the quietest ending I've ever seen Green Day wrap a show. It was also adorbs to see Flava Flav close out @BottleRockNapa for them like that well before curfew ⏰ pic.twitter.com/rhOAQF1sAl
— Mariecar Mendoza (@SFMarMendoza) May 24, 2025
The set marked just the beginning of BottleRock's eclectic opening day.
Other performances included crowd-pleasing sets from Sublime as well as rap legends E-40 and Public Enemy, who energized the crowd with nostalgic hits. Up-and-coming artists like Remi Wolf and Bad Nerves kept the energy high with their raucous performances in the middle of the day.
On the opposite Verizon Stage, electronic dance music superstar Kaskade brought the crowd to life with club-ready renditions of hits like Journey's 'Don't Stop Believin'' and Gotye's 'Somebody That I Used to Know,' complemented by a dazzling light show.
Several celebrities were spotted at the festival, including Tobey Maguire, Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann, as well as tennis legend Serena Williams and country singer Trisha Yearwood, who appeared together for one of the star-studded cooking demonstrations on the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage.
BottleRock Napa Valley continues with Justin Timberlake headlining day two and Noah Kahan closing out the weekend on Sunday.
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