Festival’s fourth year to kick-off on June 7th to celebrate Pride Month
Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore announced today the return of Baltimore by Baltimore, an annual waterfront music and maker festival series, to be held every first Saturday from June to October at Baltimore’s longtime home for public performance, the Inner Harbor Amphitheater.
Baltimore by Baltimore is a series of all-day festivals, from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., that serve as a platform for Baltimore’s leading artists, makers, and creatives to showcase the City’s diverse and creative community. Each festival will feature a different emerging or local professional producer who selects the best representation of artists and makers in their network to fill the Inner Harbor with locally produced goods, music, art, and food. New this year, Chyno, the Baltimore Foodie will curate the best street food experience in Baltimore.
“There is so much talent in Baltimore, and we’re thrilled to bring this series back every year and continue to amplify both the veteran and up-and-coming artists, community leaders and makers that celebrate Baltimore’s rich arts and culture community,” said Laurie Schwartz, president of Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore.
Every year, the festival series draws hundreds of attendees to the Inner Harbor Amphitheater and serves as a beacon for Baltimore’s artists, makers and musicians. This year’s producers range from DJ Biskit, who will host a full day of house music, to Tecla Tesnau, the queen of Baltimore rock and roll. The lineup also includes Waterfront Partnership’s own Mr. Trash Wheel, joined by some of his friends, including ultra-marathon swimmer Katie Pumphrey, comedian Big Fred Watkins and stilt-and-puppet troupe Jes Raschella.
The season kicks off Saturday, June 7, 2025, celebrating “50 Years of Pride in Baltimore”, produced by DDm, also known as Dapper Dan Midas. The Baltimore native will celebrate the city’s vibrant LGBTQ community with a lineup highlighting drag artistry and gender expression, including a performance by DDm himself.
Known for his bold and magnetic presence, DDm is one of the most distinctive new voices in entertainment. He rose to prominence in Baltimore’s rap scene as a standout live performer and songwriter, and has been featured on Netflix, BET and The Hill. Today, he’s recognized as a rising star in both music and pop culture commentary.
“I think it’s incredibly important to spotlight drag artists and the LGBTQ community,” said DDm. “In today’s climate—and always—showing queer people thriving in everyday spaces really matters to me. My hope is that Baltimore by Baltimore becomes something the community can carry forward, where each artist has the opportunity to produce their own show. Events like this stay fresh and powerful when new perspectives are at the helm.”
The 2025 Baltimore by Baltimore festivals will each be a personally curated experience featuring the following emerging and professional producers:
- June 7: Produced by DDM, also known as Emmanuel Williams, the first festival will celebrate Pride Month and Queen Culture with a Drag Show from Kotic Couture Club Car and Stealya-manz and tunes from DJ Joey.
- August 2: Produced by DJ Biskit, aka Brian Hardy, this festival will celebrate “House at the Harbor” – a full day of original house beats from leaders of the Collective Minds and the forefathers of House Music history.
- Sept. 6: Produced by Mr. Trash Wheel with a little help from his friends, ultra-marathon swimmer and artist Katie Pumphrey, comedian Big Fred Watkins, and Jes Raschella, stiltwalker and puppeteer with the troupe, Baltimore Hoop Love.
- Oct. 7: Produced by the queen of Baltimore Rock and Roll, Tecla Tesnau, the owner of the Ottobar, this festival will focus on Baltimore’s many rock subgenres – surf rock, hardcore, and electric opera, with performances from the Outcalls, Bali Llamas, and a brand new punk band, Chromafix.
The Baltimore by Baltimore festival series is made possible by the generous support of Visit Baltimore, Baltimore City Recreation and Parks, Baltimore Tourism Improvement District, Brown Advisory, M&T Bank, T. Rowe Price and MCB Real Estate.
The Waterfront Partnership website, waterfrontpartnership.org/BxB,
Waterfront Partnership, in collaboration with our government, business, and community partners, creates a clean, green, safe, sustainable and thriving urban waterfront for all to enjoy. We’re lean, nimble and effective; the only organization that wakes up every day, rolls its sleeves up and gets to work on new ways we can make Baltimore’s Waterfront even more active, attractive and appealing. We’re the hosts who greet visitors, the creators of programs and promotions and managers of our beautiful parks. We encourage investment in Baltimore’s most celebrated asset so it can continue to grow, to serve as a place of pride and the place where Baltimoreans come together to recreate and to celebrate. For more information, visit waterfrontpartnership.org.
