Discovery Park is an outdoor venue in Sacramento, California that has served as the festival grounds and large-scale concert site for major events, most prominently the Monster Energy Aftershock Festival.[1][2] The park is located at 1600 Garden Highway, Sacramento, California 95833, at the confluence of the American River and the Sacramento River, accessible via the Garden Highway exit off Interstate 5.[3][4]
At a glance
- Outdoor concert and festival site in Sacramento.[1]
- Home of the Monster Energy Aftershock Festival from its inception.[1][2]
- Hosted radio-promoted concerts spanning rock and rap.[1][5]
- Also used for community events such as fishing/river-cleanup contests.[6]
- 302-acre park at the confluence of the American and Sacramento Rivers.[7][4]
- Concert configuration accommodates 25,000 attendees with General Admission and VIP areas.[3]
Location and grounds
Discovery Park encompasses 302 acres and sits just outside Downtown Sacramento at the confluence of the American River and the Sacramento River.[7][4] The park is part of the American River Parkway, a regional recreation corridor running along the American River through Sacramento County, and serves as the western trailhead for the 32-mile Jedediah Smith Memorial Trail.[7][4] According to Evendo, the park is intentionally designed to flood during high-water periods in order to relieve pressure on the American River levees.[8]
For concerts and festivals, the venue accommodates an audience of 25,000 and features both a General Admission area and a VIP area.[3] Festival attendees access the grounds via two entrances: a north entrance at Garden Highway and a south entrance at Jibboom Street.[9]
Role in the scene
Discovery Park functions as a large-capacity outdoor space in Sacramento capable of hosting multi-stage festivals and major touring acts.[1][2] By 2016, an Aftershock event held there drew a sold-out crowd of 50,000 over two days across three stages with 35 bands, which Submerge reported as California's biggest rock festival.[2][10]
Notable events
Aftershock Festival
Discovery Park has hosted the Monster Energy Aftershock Festival since the festival's debut. The inaugural Aftershock was announced for Sunday, Sept. 23, 2012 at Discovery Park, put on by Monster Energy, 98 Rock and Arms Division Concert Management, with headliners Stone Temple Pilots and additional acts including Bush, Deftones, Chevelle, Oleander, Escape the Fate and Hollywood Undead.[1] By 2016 the festival had grown into a two-day event; its fifth annual edition ran Oct. 22–23, 2016 at Discovery Park with a sold-out crowd of 50,000, three stages and 35 bands, featuring acts such as Tool, Slayer, Anthrax, Primus, Avatar and Death Angel on day one and Korn, Ghost, Puscifer, Parkway Drive, Suicide Silence, Whitechapel and Motionless In White on day two.[1][2][10] The 2016 edition raised tens of thousands of dollars for local charities.[2]
Aftershock is organized by Danny Wimmer Presents and has grown substantially since its 2012 single-day debut: it expanded to three days in 2019 and four days by 2021, drawing approximately 160,000 attendees in both 2022 and 2024.[11][12] Every October, Discovery Park also hosts the Golden Sky Festival alongside Aftershock.[13]
102.5 Live
The park hosted KSFM's 102.5 Live concert on Saturday, May 18, 2013, an all-day event headlined by rappers T.I. and E-40, with Far East Movement, Baby Bash, Drop City Yacht Club and Royalty also on the bill.[5]
Community events
Beyond music, Discovery Park has been used as the staging point for community events, including "Fish-On! Trash-Off!" (a fish-catching and trash-pickup contest and fundraiser run with the Sacramento River Clean Up) on July 12, 2015.[6]