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SummerStage is bringing more than 80 free and benefit concerts to NYC parks this year

By

Precious Fondren

Published Apr 25, 2023

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Summerstage 2011As always, these shows take over the city's green spaces and are all 100% free, thanks to AT&T. All except for the starred events, which are benefits that you shouldn't grumble about paying for, because it's a good cause. Kick back and let AT&T drop all your calls for maximum enjoyment.June 7 Yo-Yo Ma, The Silkroad Ensemble @ Central ParkJune 7 EPMD and Funkmaster Flex, Salute to Hip-Hop @ Betsy Head ParkJune 11 Blue Note Jazz Festival: Medeski, Martin, & Wood, Josh Roseman & The King Froopy Allstars, Jim Black's AlasNoAxis @ Central ParkJune 21 Taleb Kweli @ Red Hook ParkJune 22 Reggie Watts, Natasha Leggero @ Central ParkJune 23 We Are Scientists, Milagres @ Red Hook ParkJune 24 Reggie Watts, DJ Stormin' Norman @ Red Hook ParkJune 24 *Florence and the Machine, Twin Shadow and Bubbles @ Central ParkJune 25 Lee Fields & The Expressions, Fitz & The Tantrums, Andreya Triana, Rich Medina @ Central ParkJune 28 The Moth, Hosted by Andy Borowitz with stories by Pam Grier and other special guests @ Central ParkJune 29 Jim Gaffigan, John Pinette, Comedy Central Park @ Central ParkJune 29 Larry Harlow and Latin Legends Band @ Soundview ParkJuly 2 Roy Ayers and The Jazz Mafia Symphony, "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" @ Central ParkJuly 6 Jarabe de Palo, Ely Guerra, Novalima, Mr. Pauer @ Central ParkJuly 11 Manhattan Opera Summer Recital Series @ Central ParkJuly 12 Slick Rick, DJ Brucie B @ CrotonaJuly 13 *Ratatat @ Central ParkJuly 17 Pink Martini @ Central ParkJuly 18 *Emmylou Harris and Levon Helm @ Central ParkJuly 19 Kool Moe Dee @ QueensbridgeJuly 25 *Wiz Khalifa @ Central ParkJuly 27 Wanda Jackson, Imelda May @ Central ParkAugust 1 *Lykke Li @ Central ParkAugust 2 Sugarhill Gang @ Tappen ParkAugust 6 Shelebration! A Tribute to the Works of Shel Silverstein, produced by Hal Willner @ Central ParkAugust 7 Friendly Fires, The Naked And Famous, Cults @ Central ParkAugust 13 Henry Santos @ Central ParkAugust 18 Andy Andy @ Highbridge ParkAugust 21 Rakim, EPMD, Funkmaster Flex @ Central ParkAugust 24 The Cold Crush Brothers @ East River ParkAugust 25 Wavves @ East River ParkAugust 27 Toots Thielemans, James Carter, Tia Fuller, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Charlie Parker Jazz Festival @ Marcus Garvey ParkAugust 28 Jagged Edge, Avant, Melanie Fiona @ Central Park

 

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By

Precious Fondren

Published Apr 25, 2023

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City Parks Foundation has announced its full lineup of concerts for this year’s SummerStage series, an annual festival that brings over 80 free and benefit concerts and events to Central Park and neighborhood parks throughout the city.

Alabama soul group St. Paul and the Broken Bones will open this year’s free series on June 10, headlining a show with Say She She and Mwenso & the Shakes at Central Park’s Rumsey Playfield. Other high-profile artists and groups performing free shows this summer include Skip Marley, Tanya Tucker, Nick Hakim, June McDoom, Evan Wright, Mdou Moctar, The Comet Is Coming and Kool and the Gang.

“Our goal is to bring people into their neighborhood parks and experience culture within their own community,” City Parks Foundation executive director Heather Lubov said in an interview. “In such a dense urban environment, people really rely on their parks for community. And there's something really special about experiencing a performance in a park with your local community.”

In addition to the free events, SummerStage will also host its customary series of ticketed benefit shows. Featured acts, many of which were announced previously, include Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Garbage, Indigo Girls, Buddy Guy, Cautious Clay, Manchester Orchestra, Jimmy Eat World, Cafe Tacuba and Regina Spektor.

This year’s series includes multiple events marking the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, starting with a ticketed event, “Hip-Hop Started Out in the Park: A Juneteenth Celebration of Hip-Hop,” on June 19 in Central Park. That concert features DJ Premier, Grandmaster Flash and Kid Capri. In early August, Grandmaster Flash takes the party to the Bronx with the free "Birth of a Culture" concert in Crotona Park – one of several events scheduled for the month hip-hop was born in 1973.

“Hip-hop has been part of the SummerStage festival almost since we started, so it's a really important part of our work every year,” Lubov said. “This year, we're going to be highlighting both local artists and the global influence that hip-hop has had.”

Regular summertime offerings like the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival and Metropolitan Opera Summer Recitals are back again this season. And in addition to concerts, SummerStage will also feature film screenings, dance performances, and DJ dance parties. Central Park will be the site of most of the announced shows, but concerts will also take place at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Jackie Robinson Park in Harlem, Coney Island, Herbert Von King Park in Bed-Stuy, Flushing Meadows Corona Park and additional locations.

“There's an energy that you feel that you don't get from watching something online or watching something on a screen,” Lubov said about the perennial popularity of the SummerStage series. “Someone's going to find something that they like, no matter what it is – whether it's an artist that you’ve heard of, or you just want to try something new.”

For a complete list of free and ticketed SummerStage concerts, go here.

Precious Fondren

Precious is a former WNYC & Gothamist culture reporter.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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