Bands of Enchantment returns to Albuquerque for its 5th season, with live recorded performances from artists from all over the world and the heart of New Mexico. In 2025, experience Bands of Enchantment live and for free on historic Route 66!

Looking northbound up 5th Street and Central Avenue, with the road flanked by the KiMo Theatre to the right and the Sears Building to the left. There are pedestrians walking up the sidewalk.

5th St and Central Ave. Photo courtesy of Dominic Valdez.

The critically acclaimed, Emmy-winning music extravaganza welcomes multigenre musicians from all over the globe and right here at home in New Mexico. Bands of Enchantment joins indie rock, funk, country, folk, rock and hip-hop acts in the high desert, unidos.

For the first time ever, the homegrown television music series will host a free outdoor music festival near the historic KiMo Theatre on Sept. 20, 2025. Renowned Atlanta hip-hop group Arrested Development will headline the festival, joined by Laredo’s Latin rock outfit Adrian Quesada’s Trio Asenino. Albuquerque’s own Red Light Cameras, Crime Lab, Slums of Harvard and Felix y Los Gatos support our visiting headliners for a night of searing-hot rockin’ on Route 66.

The music festival is one night only! If you crave more BOE, tickets are available for purchase to attend any of the four live taping sessions on Sept. 17–19. Feel the music all week long! Relive the magic when you stream Bands of Enchantment Season 5 on Tubi, Prime Video, the Roku Channel or All Arts.

The KiMo is an iconic site along Albuquerque’s Route 66, shining bright through the night with its golden neon lights and smooth adobe surface.

Continue reading for the legendary love story that took place in the heart of downtown Albuquerque.