For Immediate Release
May 6, 2026
SHEILA E. PATTI LABELLE. COMMON. LIZ PHAIR. SLEATER-KINNEY.
ROYEL OTIS. AND MORE.
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Returns with “Radical Joy”
15 Free Shows, Three Benefit Concerts, One Summer in Brooklyn
June 4 – September 19 | Lena Horne Bandshell at Prospect Park
Season also features Cindy Blackman Santana, Sasha Velour’s Nightgowns,
Wayne Wonder, Victory Boyd, and more
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BROOKLYN, NY, May 6, 2026 – BRIC Arts Media today announced the full lineup forBRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!, the landmark free outdoor festival returning to the Lena Horne Bandshell at Prospect Park, and presented in partnership with Prospect Park Alliance and NYC Parks, from June 4 through September 19, 2026. Now in its 47th year, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! presents 15 free concerts and three benefit shows under the theme Radical Joy, a summer built around the idea that the full richness of New York City’s cultural life is here for everyone, free of charge, in the heart of Brooklyn.
“We live in a time of uncertainty, with lots of forces pulling people apart. Our response is Radical Joy. It’s the idea of choosing to come together as a community ‒ of neighbors, families, friends, strangers ‒ on a summer night in Brooklyn, around music, for free. That shared experience, of being with people who are all there for the same reason, is worth protecting. It’s a sense of belonging to something greater. That is what this festival is, the radical joy that comes from entering that space.”
Wes Jackson, President, BRIC
“Every show this season was built with intention to reflect the full range of who Brooklyn is and what moves us. We have fan favorites like Sheila E., Patti LaBelle, Liz Phair and Sleater-Kinney, themed nights that celebrate musical traditions, and artists on the verge of their next big moment. That range is deliberate. We want you to come for someone you love and leave having discovered someone new. Bring a blanket, bring your people, and join us for a night under the stars.”
Saidah Blount, Executive Director, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!
“Prospect Park is Brooklyn’s melting pot and most loved gathering space, which makes our nearly 50 years of hosting BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! so incredible. What could be more perfect in these times than this year’s theme of Radical Joy. We look forward to welcoming all our communities to a summer of music, performance and joy.”
Morgan Monaco, President, Prospect Park Alliance
“There are few joys in New York City as sweet as this time of year – when BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! returns. It’s a space for everyone: punks and classicists, indie fans, listeners of jazz, and lovers of reggae alike. With free performances all summer long, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! invites people from across the city to gather with friends and neighbors beneath the trees of Prospect Park and share in the art of our city.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani
“New York City runs on its workers, and each one of them deserve spaces to rest, recharge and celebrate the shared culture they help build each and every day. BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! has been that space for decades, delivering a free, fun gatherings in the heart of Brooklyn where no one has to choose between enjoying their city and paying their bills. That access to art, music and community is a necessity for all New Yorkers who keep this city running.”
Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice, Julie Su.
“As a Brooklynite, there are few things that mark summer more than Celebrate Brooklyn!, BRIC’s iconic annual free outdoor concert series in Prospect Park. Now in its 47th year, Celebrate Brooklyn! has brought generations of New Yorkers together around the borough’s best musicians and dancers. This year’s Radical Joy series will be a much-needed release and salve for the whole community. See you at the Bandshell!”
New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Diya Vij
“For nearly five decades, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! has made Prospect Park come alive by bringing music from all over the world directly to the borough’s backyard. We’re grateful to BRIC and the Prospect Park Alliance for organizing this annual free event that brings New Yorkers together for joyful experiences in one of our city’s most iconic greenspaces.”
NYC Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura
“In NYC, music isn’t a luxury, it’s essential, which is why our office supports the iconic BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! festival that hosts 15 free concerts throughout the summer for all New Yorkers to enjoy. Music is a core part of New York’s identity and economy, providing jobs, supporting small businesses and connecting communities. Festivals like BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!, and our office’s own New York Music Month in June with 60 free events across the five boroughs, ensure that music is accessible to the public.”
Commissioner Rafael Espinal of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment
“Every summer, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! reminds us what it means to be part of a community. Brooklynites travel from every corner of the borough to gather in Prospect Park and share in this tradition—in art that celebrates the different identities and cultures that call this borough home. Brooklyn summers wouldn’t be complete without it, and I’m especially excited to present Dominican Night on August 29th which is set to be an evening full of dancing under stars.”
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso
Season Highlights
The 2026 season opens on Thursday, June 4, with Sheila E., one of the most accomplished live performers of her generation, joined by funk rocker Leon Knight and internationally recognized DJ Spinna. The season closes September 19 with a benefit show featuring two of alternative rock’s most enduring and influential acts: Liz Phair and Sleater-Kinney.
Among the season’s highlights:
- Sheila E.(June 4, Opening Night) kicks off the summer with a funk and soul dynasty spanning four decades. Drummer, percussionist, vocalist, and bandleader, Sheila E. has been a defining force in R&B and pop since the 1980s.
- Patti LaBelle(June 26, Benefit Show) brings one of the greatest voices in American music to Prospect Park in a show that marks a significant first for BRIC: a major artist booked directly by the festival, without a corporate promoter partner. For fans, it is a chance to see a legend. For the industry, it is a statement about what independent presenting can achieve.
- Juneteenth(June 19) is programmed as a family affair in the most literal sense. Infinity Song and Victory Boyd are siblings, the Boyd family, sharing a stage and a sound rooted in the same household. Annie and the Caldwells, a Mississippi family band led by matriarch Ms. Annie Caldwell, completes a bill where family is not just a theme. It is the lineup.
- Common(August 28) performs as part of The Action Lab’s Harry Belafonte Fellowship, bringing one of hip-hop’s most enduring civic voices to the Bandshell in an event that is as much a cultural moment as a concert.
- Royel Otis(July 18, Benefit Show) makes their Brooklyn debut. The Australian indie duo from Sydney has built a devoted international following with a sound that moves fluidly across indie rock, new wave, and psychedelic pop.
- Cindy Blackman Santana(July 24, Jazz Night) headlines an all-women jazz lineup alongside Mexican vibraphonist and composer Patricia Brennan and Lucía, the 24-year-old Veracruz-born vocalist who won the 2022 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Blackman Santana is one of the most accomplished drummers of her generation, with a 40-year career as bandleader, recording artist, and live performer.
- Yola(August 15, Americana Night) headlines BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!’s America 250 celebration, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts. The Grammy-nominated British Nigerian singer-songwriter has become one of the genre’s most essential voices. She’s joined by Dom Flemons and the Traveling Wildfires, along with Brooklyn-based Pitchfork breakout Cleo Reed.
- Aaliyah Day (August 8) honors the late R&B icon who was born and raised in Brooklyn. The full lineup has not yet been announced; additional details will be released in the coming weeks.
- Sasha Velour’s Nightgowns (August 21) brings the genre-defining drag performance series to the free outdoor stage. Nightgowns is theater with a drag sensibility, and the Lena Horne Bandshell is its natural home.
- Liz Phair and Sleater-Kinney (September 19, Benefit Show, Season Closer) close the summer with one of the most compelling pairings in alternative rock. Both artists have defined independent music for thirty years and show no signs of slowing.
Additional performances include a reggae-influenced lineup with Wayne Wonder and Lila Iké (June 20); Habibi Fest featuring EMEL, Nesrine, and Mai Egizouli alongside a full lineup of SWANA artists (July 10); globalFEST with DakhaBrakha, Yeison Landero, Sally Baby’s Silver Dollars, and Sunju Park (August 7); Family Day with Antibalas and The Center for Fiction x Brooklyn Conservatory of Music x Katie Yamasaki (June 13); the New Soul Night with CARRTOONS ft. Hailé Supreme, Sofia Valdés, and Julia Zivic (July 31).
America 250 and Civic Programming
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! enters its 2026 season with an inclusive perspective on this national moment. The season is built around the communities that make up America: their music, their stories, and their presence on a free stage in Brooklyn all summer long.
That vision culminates on Americana Night (August 15), an America 250 celebration sponsored by the NEA, featuring Yola, Dom Flemons and the Traveling Wildfires, and Cleo Reed in a lineup that tells a fuller story of American music.
Community Joy Day (July 11), co-presented with Legal Aid Society in celebration of the organization’s 150th anniversary, anchors the season’s civic dimension. The show brings together Brooklyn communities alongside one of the city’s most essential legal institutions, a reminder that culture and access to justice are not separate conversations.
A Season Led by Women
The 2026 season is a testament to the extraordinary range of women making music across every genre right now. Jazz Night presents an all-women headlining bill. Sheila E. opens the summer. Liz Phair and Sleater-Kinney close it. In between, women lead the stage in funk, reggae, Americana, Latin, and indie performances. It is one of the most women-forward lineups in BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!’s history, and a reflection of both BRIC’s commitment to equity and the remarkable depth of talent across genders and genres.
Free and Open to All
Fifteen headline shows at Prospect Park are free and open to the public, with three ticketed benefit concerts held in support of BRIC’s year-round programming. The festival also includes a pop-up concert at Brower Park in Crown Heights (July 25), featuring Black House Radio in partnership with Council Member Chi Ossé and Rooftop Films.
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! has the distinction of being one of the longest-running free performing arts festivals in the country, presenting world-class programming at no cost to audiences since 1979.
2026 Season Schedule
- June 4 | Opening Night: Sheila E. | Leon Knight | DJ Spinna
- June 13 | Family Day: Antibalas | KidsRead with Kate Yamasaki | DJ Marc Bars
- June 19 | Juneteenth: Infinity Song | Annie and the Caldwells | Victory Boyd | DJ Duane
- June 20 | Wayne Wonder | Lila Iké | DJ Gravy
- June 26 | Benefit Show: Patti LaBelle
- July 10 | Habibi Festival at BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Featuring EMEL, Mai Elgizouli, Nesrine, Yacine Boulares and the Habibi Festival House Band, and Yalla! Party Project
- July 11 | The Legal Aid Society Presents: Community Joy Day with Saint James Joy, Pahua, and Puppetmobile
- July 18 | Royel Otis | Ax and the Hatchetmen
- July 24 | Jazz at the Bandshell: Cindy Blackman Santana | The Patricia Brennan Septet | Lucía
- July 25 | BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! at Brower Park with Black House Radio
- July 31 | CARRTOONS & Hailé Supreme | Sofía Valdés | Julia Zivic
- August 7 | globalFEST at BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! With DakhaBrakha, Yeison Landero, Sally Baby’s Silver Dollars, and Sunju Park
- August 8 | BRIC Celebrates Aaliyah: One in a Million
- August 14 | Lyricist Lounge 35th Anniversary
- August 15 | Americana Night: Yola | Dom Flemons and the Traveling Wildfires | Cleo Reed
- August 21 | Sasha Velour’s NightGowns
- August 28 | BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! and The Action Lab present: Common and Special Guests To Honor the Social Justice Legacy of Harry Belafonte
- August 29 | Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso Presents: Dominican Night at the Bandshell
- September 19 | Liz Phair & Sleater-Kinney | The Flannel and The Fury 2026
All shows take place at the Lena Horne Bandshell at Prospect Park, 141 Prospect Park West, Brooklyn, NY 11215, with the exception of the pop-up show which takes place at Brower Park in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Benefit shows require tickets. Visit HERE to RSVP for shows (not mandatory), purchase tickets for benefit shows, and keep up with the latest BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! updates.
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PARTNERS AND SUPPORTERS
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! is presented in partnership with Prospect Park Alliance and NYC Parks.
Public support for BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! is provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York City Council with special thanks to Commissioner Diya Vij, New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, Deputy Speaker Nantasha Williams; Council Members Crystal Hudson, Rita Joseph, Shahana Hanif, Chi Osse, Farah Louis, and Chris Banks; and members of the New York City Council’s Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus; and the New York State Legislature, with support from the Brooklyn Delegation, with special thanks to New York State Senators Zellnor Myrie and Andrew Gounardes; and New York State Assembly Members Robert Carroll, Brian Cunningham, and Phara Souffrant-Forrest. Additional support and special thanks to Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! at Brower Park is presented in partnership with New York City Council Member Chi Ossé and Rooftop Films.
Lead support for performing arts at BRIC comes from the Howard Gilman Foundation.
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! is made possible in part by generous support from our members, sponsors, funders, and Board of Directors. Additional support is provided from the Shubert Organization.
Media partners for the 2026 BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! season include the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment, WBGO, and City Point.
About BRIC
BRIC is one of New York City’s premier cultural nonprofits – a hybrid arts presenter, media producer, and educator. For almost 50 years, we’ve partnered with innovators and underserved communities to spotlight voices that deserve to be heard, through such tentpole programs as BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!, BRIC JazzFest, BRIC House Party, BRIC TV, BCAT, and multiple artist residencies, workshops, and classes. In 2025, BRIC became the first media organization to join NYC’s prestigious Cultural Institutions Group. For emerging creators, lifelong storytellers, and communities shaping culture, BRIC is the amplifier. For more information visit bricartsmedia.org.
About Prospect Park Alliance
Prospect Park Alliance is the non-profit organization that sustains, restores and advances Prospect Park, Brooklyn’s Backyard, in partnership with the City of New York. The Alliance provides critical staff and resources that keep the park green and vibrant for the diverse communities that call Brooklyn home. The Alliance cares for the woodlands and natural areas; restores the park’s buildings and landscapes; creates new park destinations; and provides free or low-cost volunteer, education and recreation programs. Through the work of the Alliance, Prospect Park is an international model for the care of urban parks, and one of the premier green spaces in the United States. Learn more at www.prospectpark.org.
About TD Bank U.S.
TD Bank US Holding Company and its subsidiaries, including TD Bank, N.A., are collectively known as TD Bank U.S. As the U.S. banking business of The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX and NYSE: TD), a leading North American financial services firm, TD Bank U.S. serves more than 10 million clients and has a network of approximately 1,050 locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Carolinas and Florida. We support our clients and communities with a full range of retail, small business, and commercial banking products and services. We also offer customized private banking and wealth management services, a comprehensive suite of credit card products for consumers and businesses, and automotive vehicle financing and dealer commercial services. TD Bank U.S. is one of the largest banks in the U.S. by assets and is headquartered in Mount Laurel, N.J. To learn more, visit www.td.com/us.
About Con Edison
Con Edison is a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. [NYSE: ED], one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy companies. The utility delivers electricity, natural gas and steam, and serves 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County, NY. For financial, operations and customer service information, visit www.conEd.com.
About Brooklyn Made
Brooklyn Made is a project of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce dedicated to showcasing and supporting locally made goods and the creative entrepreneurs behind them. With retail locations at City Point in downtown Brooklyn and Industry City in Sunset Park, and a pop-up in Tokyo, Japan, Brooklyn Made is the destination for discovering what makes Brooklyn, Brooklyn.