JAY-Z and The Roots Announced as Roots Picnic 2026 Headliners

JAY-Z and The Roots have been announced as headliners for the 2026 Roots Picnic. The two acts will perform together on Saturday, May 30, closing out the first day of the Philadelphia festival.

The event will take place at Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park, marking the first time the festival has been held at the location. Roots Picnic, which is curated by The Roots, is scheduled to run across two days, with additional lineup details expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

In a statement, Roots manager and Live Nation Urban president Shawn Gee shared, “Moving the Roots Picnic to Belmont Plateau and bringing JAŸ-Z and The Roots together to perform are both bucket-list moments for us.”

“After meeting with Mayor Cherelle Parker and hearing her vision for Philadelphia 250, she truly inspired us to dream even bigger, and we’re grateful to her, Commissioner Susan Slawson, Jazelle Jones and everyone who helped make it happen,” Gee continued. “We can’t wait to see everyone in May at the Plat.”

The Roots Picnic performance will mark JAY-Z’s first announced concert since 2019, when he performed at Webster Hall in New York. His most recent live appearance came in July 2025, when he joined Beyoncé onstage during the final show of her “Cowboy Carter” tour in Las Vegas.

Tickets are currently available through a pre-sale using the code ROOTS26 via the festival’s website. General ticket sales are scheduled to begin Wednesday, March 18 at 10 a.m. ET.

For more information and to stay up-to-date on the latest announcements, fans can visit the official Roots Picnic website.