SummerStage, New York City's free concert series, is opening. Here's who you can see.

CBS News

2 days ago

The SummerStage free concert series throughout New York City kicks off Wednesday night in Central Park.
Marcus Miller, a Grammy award-winning jazz bassist, will be the headliner on opening night at 6 p.m. He will be joined by Tank and the Bangas and The Soul Rebels for a night of New Orleans jazz. Gates will open at 5 p.m. at Rumsey Playfield.
The outdoor performing arts festival will be held all summer in Central Park and 13 other parks in all five boroughs. More than 70 shows are scheduled, featuring salsa, jazz, hip-hop, indie-rock, dance, opera, pop, and soul.
"You can see the Roots in Queens, that's going to be really great. Big Freedia is going to be in Brooklyn. Lettuce, that's a jazzy, funky band, is going to be in Coney Island. We have Rakim, who's going to be performing on Staten Island. So there's a huge number of artists," said City Parks Foundation Executive Director Heather Lubov.
The Roots perform during the Roots Picnic at Mann Center For Performing Arts on June 01, 2025 in Philadelphia.
Julia Beverly/WireImage
She said the festival will also highlight lesser-known artists.
"We're doing a number of showcases, particularly in Central Park. We have Aussie Day, which features a lot of up and coming singer-songwriters from Australia. We have Canada Day, which is similar. Mike's Young World, which is a hip-hop festival in Bed-Stuy in Brooklyn. It's going to feature local artists from the community," Lubov said.
This will be the 39th season of SummerStage. You can find more information about all of the shows in their online brochure.