Overview M3F is a two-day music festival in Phoenix that gives 100 percent of its proceeds to charity, and by the run-up to its 2027 edition it counted $5.2 million donated since 2004, $2 million of it from 2022 on. It runs in early March at Steele Indian School Park on three stages, with a bill that leans toward house and electronic acts alongside indie and pop. The festival started as the McDowell Mountain Music Festival; by its own telling the first one was two thousand fans, hundreds of lawn chairs and one stage. Between editions it runs The Community Project, a year-round program that includes a monthly Art Lab for emerging artists, a desert walkabout called The Field Trip, a Build Day that renovates a community space, and the M3F Run Club. On site The site is fully cashless and there is no re-entry, and children 12 and under get in free with a ticketed adult. Bags have to be clear, water stations run across the grounds, and folding chairs, wagons, totems and selfie sticks stay outside. There is no official festival parking, so the festival points people to Valley Metro or rideshare, and a bike valet stands at the North Central Avenue entrance. Talent and Influencers Maggie Rogers, Jamie xx and Toro y Moi played in 2023. Dominic Fike, Lane 8, Hippo Campus, Arlo Parks and Dayglow played in 2024. LCD Soundsystem and Justice headlined in 2025, with Sylvan Esso, Alvvays and BADBADNOTGOOD on the bill. Mau P and Peggy Gou headlined in 2026, with Big Wild, Chris Lorenzo and Cuco. The first names released for 2027 were Fisher, Joji, Thundercat, Flying Lotus, Sammy Virji, Disco Lines, Lola Young and BLOND:ISH, with Tiga and AYYBO booked back to back. Track record John Largay, owner of Wespac Construction, founded the festival in 2004 under its community, culture and charity motto. Grants go out through the M3F Fund, which takes applications from nonprofits; in 2024 that ranged from $100,000 for the music therapy program at Phoenix Children's Hospital to $2,000 for Let's Go Compost. Habitat for Humanity, Backline, Free Arts for Abused Children and Phoenix Rescue Mission have all been partners. Good Good Good reported in 2024 that the festival was diverting 80 percent of its waste through recycling and composting with Greenlight Solution.