New York’s Top Free Summer Concerts
Here’s your personal guide to the top free summer concerts in New York, in addition to the leading outdoor movie screenings around the city.
- Central Park Summerstage, the City Parks Foundation-backed annual concert series, is a serious hotspot for New York festival-goers and music junkies. The festival, which runs from May 18 to October 4, showcases a variety of talents ranging from Brooklyn dance leagues to indie rock and heavy metal to jazz and blues. Make sure to catch indie darlings The Kooks and Atlas Genius on June 24, Warped Tour favorite Rise Against on July 28 and newcomer Walk the Moon on September 24.
Click here for more information regarding Summerstage events and the full lineup.
- Celebrate Brooklyn! at Prospect Park is a serious contender among New York’s more eclectic festival offerings. Hosted by BRIC, a non-profit organization that serves the art and media community throughout everyone’s (second) favorite borough, will see twenty-nine artists hit its stage until Willie Nelson bids the festival farewell on August 12. Stop by Park Slope this summer to catch Interpol* on July 21, Modest Mouse on July 22*, Sylvan Esso on July 25, and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros* on August 4.
*Although most Celebrate Brooklyn! shows are free, several artists perform as part of a benefit series and will cost you an extra penny. Interpol costs $35, Modest Mouse is $42.50, and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros prices out at $39.50.
Click here for more information regarding Celebrate Brooklyn! events and the full lineup.
- For many, outdoor movie screenings are a long cherished institution of the past. For cinephiles looking to get their nostalgia fix this summer, check out New York’s many sunset screenings across each of the five boroughs. This summer’s offerings include Back to the Future on June 21 (Hell’s Kitchen), Clueless on July 8 (McCarren Park, Williamsburg) and classic blockbuster Sharknado 2: The Second One on July 16 (Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 1).
