Bonnaroo 2008

Led Zeppelin rumors fizzle with lineup announcement.

By James Montgomery

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Attention Internet rumormongers: The folks behind Bonnaroo are listening. And they're totally thumbing their noses at you.

For months, message boards have been buzzing that none other than Led Zeppelin — who reunited in December to play a memorial concert for the late Ahmet Ertegun in London — would top the bill at this year's edition of the 'Roo. And now, all that chatter has proven to be true. Well, not really.

While the mighty Led Zep won't be appearing at Bonnaroo 2008, the equally mighty Lez Zeppelin — an all-girl Zep cover band from New York City — will be there, along with headliners Pearl Jam, Metallica and Jack Johnson. That's according to Superfly Productions and AC Entertainment, the co-founders of the festival, who gave MTV News a peak at the lineup late Tuesday night (February 5) night.

Joining Lez on the bill is a veritable who's who of indie, hip-hop and, well, jam, a list of more than 80 acts that includes Kanye West, Death Cab for Cutie, M.I.A., Bonnaroo mainstays My Morning Jacket, the Raconteurs, Rilo Kiley, Sigur Rós and Lupe Fiasco. There are also healthy doses of metal (in addition to Metallica, Mastodon and the Sword are scheduled to appear), punk (Against Me!, Gogol Bordello) and, of course, blog (Vampire Weekend, Black Kids, MGMT, Battles).

And longtime 'Roo-goers need not fret: Phil Lesh, the Allman Brothers Band, Bela Fleck and Umphrey's McGee will be there too. Also of note, Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant is scheduled to appear — albeit performing a set with Alison Krauss — so start those "Plant is gonna sing with Lez Zeppelin during SuperJam!" rumors now.

(Check out our coverage of the 2007 Bonnaroo Festival.)

More performers are expected to be announced over the coming weeks, and when all is said and done, this year's festival will feature more than 100 bands and 20 comedians performing on 13 stages. The action will go down June 12-15 in (where else?) Manchester, Tennessee.