Newport Jazz Festival Unveils Initial 2026 Lineup: Herbie Hancock, Kamasi Washington, Vulfpeck, Thundercat, Lake Street Dive and More
Newport Jazz Festival has unveiled the initial artist lineup for its 2026 presentation, set to return to Newport, R.I.’s Fort Adams State Park from July 31 to Aug. 2. This first dispatch for the standard-setting festival’s 72nd annual staging works out from its historical jazz core to include a range of related genres and styles, curated in collaboration with Newport Jazz’s new Artistic Director Nate Smith. Herbie Hancock, Vulfpeck and a centennial celebration for Miles Davis and John Coltrane, led by Kamasi Washington and Chief Adjuah, will headline this year’s festivities, with 50 acclaimed acts confirmed and more still to be announced.
Beyond the top billings, Newport Jazz Festival’s 2025 lineup will honor its roots in the American musical tradition with performances from jazz groups like Jonathan Batiste Trios, Charles Lloyd Sky Quartet (with Jason Moran, Larry Grenadier and Kweku Sumbry), Snarky Puppy, The Bad Plus (on their farewell tour), SML, Billy Hart Quartet, Terri Lyne Carrington and Social Science, Butcher Brown, Linda May Han Oh Trio (with Ambrose Akinmusire and Tyshawn Sorey), Chicago Underground Duo, Sullivan Fortner Trio, Fuller Sound, Brandon Woody’s Upendo, and Flea, accompanied by his star-studded Honora Band. Celebrated jazz soloists on the lineup include Smith, Celeste, Chief Adjuah, Anoushka Shankar, Lalah Hathaway, Mei Semones, Marquis Hill, Braxton Cook and Mohini Dey.
While Newport Jazz is peerless in its mix of massive names and rising stars, the festival truly shines in its annual roster of special collaborations; this year’s most exciting exceptional stagings include Robert Glasper with Bilal and Ari Lennox, Atomic Habitz (the trio of Marcus King, Chris Dave and MonoNeon proven at Blue Note), rare duo set from John Scofield and Dave Holland and Cory Wong and Joshua Redman, and Bernard Purdin & Friends. The biggest names among the jazz-adjacent performers on the bill include Thundercat, Gary Clark Jr., Lake Street Dive, Leon Thomas, Little Simz, Angine de Poitrine, Arlo Parks, The Dip and Gotts Street Park.
Three-day tickets for Newport Jazz Festival 2025 are available now. Single and two-day tickets will go on sale this Thursday, April 23, at 1 p.m. ET. Find more information at newportjazz.org.
