Did You Know All These Concerts Happened at GVSU?

Long before there was a Van Andel Arena music fans had to go elsewhere to see a show in Grand Rapids and one of those venues was Grand Valley State University.

All The Concerts at GVSU Over The Years

Grand Valley State University has been hosting concerts on the campus since the early 1970s and the way up to today. I was blown away and some of the major acts they have had over the years.

Here are some of the greats that have performed at GVSU:

• Tina Turner and Ike Turner in 1971
• Carly Simon in 1972
• The J. Geils Band in 1973
• Stephen Stills in 1973
• Steve Miller Band in 1973
• Herbie Hancock in 1974

For those of you who got to see some of these shows you are lucky. Continuing with the list of artists who have performed at GVSU:

• Aerosmith in 1974
• Jimmy Buffet in 1974
• The Eagles in 1974
• Leon Russell and The Gap Band in 1974
• Peter Frampton, Spooky Tooth, and Montrose in 1974
• Santana in 1974
• Wishbone Ash in 1974

• Ian Hunter in 1975
• Genesis in 1975
• Foghat and Leslie West in 1975
• Frank Zappa in 1975
• Ted Nugent and Kansas in 1975
• Harry Chapin in 1976

• Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band and Angel in 1976
• Tom Waits in 1979
• John Lee Hooker in 1980
• Hellogoodbye and Sullivan Skye in 2009
• Bo Burnham in 2011
• Justin Mooore and Kari Lynch in 2012
• David Nail, Sam Hunt, and The Henningsens in 2014
• Hoodie Allen and Lion Babe in 2015
• Dan + Shay, Joel Crouse, and Ryan Kinder in 2016
• All-Time Low and Boys of Fall in 2018
• Blackbear in 2019
• Yung Gravy in 2022
• T-Pain in 2023
• Lauren Alaina, Mason Ramsey, and Julia Cole in 2024

To have been a fly on the wall back during some of those 70s shows would have been amazing. There are a lot more bands that have performed at GVSU and social media was kind enough to point some of those out.

Other Bands Who Performed at GVSU From Social Media

The GVSU Alumni Facebook page asked what were people's favorite shows to play at the campus and fans uncovered a lot of artists who performed there like INXS, Adam Sandler, Sheryl Crow, The Stray Cats, Willie Nelson, The Beach Boys, Chicago, and so many more.

This is a really fun thread that keeps uncovering bands that have performed at the GVSU campus. Maybe you have a favorite and make a post just click here.