The “big concert” that will take place in Syracuse has been announced.

Billy Joel will perform at the JMA Wireless Dome on the campus of Syracuse University on Friday, April 11, 2025, SU and Live Nation announced Thursday. It’s the eighth time the piano legend has performed at the former Carrier Dome, breaking his own record. A superstar is a guest: Sting.

Tickets go on sale Friday, October 4th at 9am via Ticketmaster. Citi cardholders will have access to pre-sale tickets starting Monday, September 30 at 10 a.m., and venue pre-sales begin Wednesday, October 2 at 10 a.m. with special code BILLYJMA.

Prices start at $73.50, officials said; Additional fees may apply. There will be a limit of eight tickets.

Due to high demand, fans may also want to check for tickets from resellers such as VividSeats, StubHub, TicketNetwork or SeatGeek.

It will be the third upcoming concert at the JMA Dome, which will also host Pink on Sunday, October 6, and Metallica on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Tickets for Metallica will be available to the general public starting Friday.

Syracuse University and Live Nation teased the announcement Wednesday as “one of the biggest concerts of 2025” at the Dome. SU previously used the words “big” and “big” to tease concert announcements such as The Beatles’ Paul McCartney at the then-Carrier Dome in 2017 and Elton John’s farewell tour in 2022; McCartney also performed in 2022, marking the first event when it was renamed the JMA Wireless Dome.

Former Syracuse and NFL quarterback Don McPherson joined JMA Dome manager Pete Sala and Live Nation Upstate New York/Connecticut president Jim Koplik at the announcement, which sparked a variety of theories about who the artist would be. McPherson led the Orange football team to an undefeated season in 1987, the same year U2 appeared at the Dome on The Joshua Tree tour and played for the Philadelphia Eagles, which some writers believe meant an Eagles appearance.

McPherson said he was excited to be part of the announcement both as a Syracuse alumnus and as a Joels Long Island local.

Other top tours in 2024 and 2025 gave some fans hope that the concert included Taylor Swift, Green Day/Smashing Pumpkins, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Linkin Park (with its new lead singer) and the recently reunited Oasis would be. who is expected to announce US concerts soon. Of all, Swift has been the least announced, having performed at larger venues on The Eras Tour, which is hosted by AEG and not Live Nation.

Joel is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician known for some of the biggest hits of the 1970s and 1980s, including “Piano Man,” “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song),” “Uptown Girl,” and “Only the Good Die.” Young,” “The Longest Time,” “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me,” and “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” He recently released “Turn the Lights Back On,” his first new pop song in three decades, and concluded a historic residency at Madison Square Garden.

Joel is also a Syracuse legend and holds the record for most concerts at SU Stadium with seven Dome performances. To mark the success of his concert in 2015, a jersey with the number 7 was hung from the rafters. He was also the commencement speaker at Syracuse University in 2006 and donated $320,000 to SU’s Setnor School of Music in 2005 to establish the Billy Joel Fellowships in Composition.

Sting previously played at the Dome with The Police in 1982 and 1984, drawing 42,000 fans in 1984 – the third largest crowd in the Dome’s history. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is the voice of hits like “Every Breath You Take,” “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” “Desert Rose” and “Roxanne.”

According to a promotional video shown at the press conference, the Dome concert will be Sting’s first performance with Joel in upstate New York. Sting last performed in Syracuse in 2022 at the Empower FCU Amphitheater in Lakeview, then known as St. Joe’s Amp.

Other big names who have played at the Dome include The Rolling Stones, The Who, Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd, New Kids on the Block, Luke Bryan, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bon Jovi and Garth Brooks. Prince’s epic 1985 concert was broadcast live to 12 million people in Europe and later released on DVD/Blu-ray.

The venue has undergone several changes in recent years, including a new roof, new seating, air conditioning (yes, there was no air conditioning in the “Carrier” Dome) and improved cell service, as well as being renamed the JMA Wireless Dome. The sound technology has also improved, although there are still sound challenges at concerts due to the stadium acoustics.

Koplik said Live Nation and SU have been actively trying to book more concerts at the Dome. Next year’s Metallica and Billy Joel/Sting concerts will be the sixth major music events at the venue in a year, following performances by RHCP, Springsteen, Def Leppard/Motley Crue and Pink.