Noah Kahan is the latest artist to lash out at the White House for using his music in a social media propaganda. After President Trump’s visit to a Michigan auto plant this week to tout cars made in America, the administration posted videos and photos on TikTok and Instagram cued to Kahan’s song “American Cars” from his fourth studio album, the Billboard 200 No. 1 LP The Great Divide.

The 29-year-old Vermont-bred singer-songwriter adamantly slammed the unauthorized placement, writing in comments on Instagram (where, at press time, it appeared the sound had been disabled), “Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration.” The comment on Monday’s (July 27) post has more than 21,000 likes so far.

The song, however, is still featured in the accompanying White House TikTok from the event, where it plays as Trump is signing a white Corvette while visiting the General Motors proving grounds in Milford, Mich. Kahan’s frequent cowriter and the co-author of “American Cars,” guitarist Noah Levine, left a more blunt comment on the Instagram post, writing, “You fat f–k this song isn’t for you.” At press time, a number of fans complained that it appeared Levine’s comment had been scrubbed.

At press time, a spokesperson for the White House had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment.

Kahan joins a very long list of artists who’ve called out the Trump administration for using their music without permission in videos or posts promoting the president’s agenda. Over the weekend, Katy Perry was similarly incensed when the White House used her iconic 2010 hit “Firework” in a TikTok that featured footage of military strikes, writing on X, “I am deeply appalled and angry to see ‘Firework’ used on the @WhiteHouse TikTok account as a backing track for video footage of military strikes. I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.” The video synchronized Perry’s “boom, boom, boom” lyrics with black-and-white footage of bombing, with the caption, “Iran has been warned.”

Perry added, “My music is for bringing people together, not celebrating warfare.”

That followed a similar comment from Ariana Grande in June, when she objected to the White House using a version of her 2024 song “Bye” in a TikTok showing ICE agents arresting and handcuffing people. “Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense. F— ICE,” Grande wrote in a comment that is no longer visible.

Kahan, Perry and Grande join a large roster of acts who have spoken out against Trump using their music in campaign and administration hype videos, a list that includes everyone from Beyoncé and Adele to Celine Dion, Foo Fighters, Guns N’ Roses, Jack White/White Stripes, Kenny Loggins, Neil Young, Olivia Rodrigo, Ozzy Osbourne, Rihanna and many more.

Dua Lipa has announced her curated lineup for the 2026 London Literature Festival, running from Oct. 20 to Nov. 1 at the Southbank Centre. The program marks the latest venture for her Service95 Book Club, which features monthly reading selections and an author-interview podcast series.

“Curating the line up for the London Literature Festival with my Service95 Book Club has been a true joy and I’m so proud of the program we have created,” Dua Lipa said in a statement. “We’ll be joined by icons as well as emerging voices from across the arts the world needs to know. You will recognize some as friends of the book club, and others may be your first introduction, but ultimately, I wanted to create a space that brings together some of the most exciting writers, poets and thinkers from around the globe. I’m looking forward to being both in conversation and taking my seat in the audience at this iconic venue.”

Dua will be in conversation with a number of authors and musicians during the event. On Oct. 24, She will speak with British author Zadie Smith about her award-winning 2000 debut novel, White Teeth, alongside separate discussions with Sudanese-Canadian poet Mustafa (Oct. 24) and punk-rock icon and author Patti Smith (Oct. 25).

Elsewhere during the festival, there’ll be a number of panels focused on translated fiction, and an appearance from British rapper and musician Kae Tempest. Malorie Blackman (Noughts & Crosses) and Hernan Diaz (Trust) will also be in attendance. Tickets for the event are on sale now from the Southbank Centre’s official website.

The guest curation is the latest move by the esteemed London venue in its 75th anniversary celebrations. In June, Harry Styles curated the annual Meltdown Festival and also performed a stripped-back, rarity-stuffed headline show as part of the program.

Dua’s Service95 Book Club launched in 2023, and its monthly reads have included both classics (One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez) and a number of contemporary favorites (Flesh by David Szalay).

London’s Ministry of Sound will mark its 35th birthday with a weekend-long party, Billboard U.K. can exclusively reveal.

Across the weekend of Oct. 2-3, Andy C, Kerri Chandler, Moodymann and Loco Dice will take over the famous club with a series of performances. Tickets are available for the event via Dice.fm.

Louder, MoS’ longest-running club night, will take over the Friday night, with drum-and-bass legend Andy C returning to the London venue for the first time in 10 years for an extended three-hour set.

The following day, influential label Hard Times will bring together two of house music’s most revered figures, with New York deep-house pioneer Kerri Chandler and Detroit icon Moodymann performing during the daytime event.

On the evening of Oct. 3, Urge, the Ministry’s flagship underground house and techno night, will be headlined by Tunisian-German DJ and producer Loco Dice. Additional names for the event series will be announced in the coming months.

Speaking on the program, club director Matt Long said, “Few venues get to celebrate 35 years at the heart of dance music. We wanted to mark this milestone with a lineup that reflects both our heritage and where our sound is today. It’s an honor to celebrate this anniversary with such incredible talent, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you all.”

It’s the latest celebration for the London institution’s 35th anniversary. The club recently released a new book, Ministry of Sound: Anthology, which tells the untold story of the London space, and launched Boxed In, a live-streamed talent competition for emerging DJs. They will return to Ibiza with a one-off party at 528, marking their first event on the island in more than a decade.

The club first opened in London’s Elephant & Castle in September 1991, and has played a key role in shaping the U.K.’s dance music scene. The Ministry of Sound Group has grown to include a record label, publishing arm and a private members club.

U.S. DJ and producer John Summit, British emcee Skepta and Dutch dancefloor maestro KI/KI are among the big names confirmed for Lost Paradise, the beloved Australian electronic music festival that rings in the New Year.

Also set to pump out the tunes at the 2026 edition are Overmono, Armand Van Helden, Nia Archives, Ewan McVicar, Sam Alfred, Rossi., Partiboi69 and many others.

Presented across the five days from Dec. 28 to Jan. 1 in Glenworth Valley, New South Wales, roughly an hour’s drive from Sydney, Lost Paradise is coming off four consecutive sell-outs.

The festival, reads a statement from organizers Finely Tuned, “exists on a simple set of principles: eco-conscious, music-centred, community-built and wellness-first.”

Lost Paradise launched in 2014, and today stands out as one of the state’s last-remaining camping festivals.

While Australia’s festivals scene is in a spin cycle, with popular brands including Bluesfest, Splendour in the Grass, and many others either collapsing or taking a hiatus, dance music events play to a different beat.

Creative Australia’s Soundcheck report from 2024 mapped the nation’s festivals circuit. Of the 500 plus festivals in the market, dance music was found to be most popular genre, accounting for almost one in every four fests in these parts.

General admission camping access is included with all tickets purchased, while optional “glamping” accommodation options will be announced in due course.

Three-day GA is priced at A$569.99 (A$27.57 fee) and four-day tickets cost A$639.99 (plus A$28.50 fee). Presales begin Tuesday, Aug. 4 from 10am AEST, and the general admission onsale starts at the same time the following day, Wednesday, Aug. 5.

Lost Paradise

Monday Dec. 28 – Friday, Jan. 1 2027
Glenworth Valley (Darkinjung Country)

Lineup
John Summit, Skepta, KI/KI, Overmono, Armand Van Helden, Nia Archives, Ewan McVicar, Sam Alfred, Rossi., Partiboi69

A-Z:
Benwal, Caleb Jackson, Chaos In The Cbd, Dameeeela, Dart, Dean Turnley, DJ Seinfeld (Live), Drifting Clouds, Flava D, Hamdi, Harry Hayes, Helena Lauwaert, Hot Dub Time Machine, Jamback, James Pepper B2B Baron Von Trax, Jayda G, Job Jobse, The Jungle Giants, Kirollus, Kyle Starkey, Loods, Luuk Van Dijk, Memphis Lk, Mella Dee, Ned Bennett, Not Without Friends (Ext. Set), Osmosis Jones, Pretty Girl (Live), Riordan, Saint Ludo, Salute, Soul Mass Transit System, Stacie Fields, Supergloss, Tommy Holohan, Twofaced, Willo

Arianna Sunshine, Bella Backe, Callyy, Casual P, Couch Mechanic, Cricket, Delulu, DJ Macaroni, Disco Dora, Elijah Something, Gmoz, Jacqui Cunningham, Jose Hot Plate, Kai Kawai, Kira Sunday, Lily FM, Lost Soundsystem, Madame Rêve, Mash B2B Harley Ferris, Mimi J, Miphi, Only Child, Partigirl, Penelope, Sasha Milani, Sim Select, Tia Lacoste, Troy Beman, Zacattacq

Presented by Finely Tuned

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As legend would have it, Niccolò Paganini completed one of his legendary violin performances on a single string when the others snapped one by one. Whether it was the art of showmanship, or just a display of ridiculous talent, is a matter still open for discussion hundreds of years later.

Vetle Nærø had his own moment that would’ve made Paganini proud.

Earlier this month, the Norwegian neo-classic composer dazzled with a performance on the piano, a special guest of the 2026 Bergtatt Festival. That haunting mid-morning set at Luster’s Dale Church, built during the first half of the 13th century, was unexpectedly unplugged — through no fault of his own.

“The concert was going to be a more electronic set with my synthesizers, some gear. But they were lost at the airport,” he tells Billboard. “So I had to basically rearrange my concert and return to solo piano.”

The show must, and did, go on. The performance, and his words to the 200 guests, had some in floods of happy tears. To create “calm and connection,” he says, “is the reason why I do this.”

Thanfully, the musical equipment has since been returned to its owner.

Born in Oslo in 2000, and raised in the quiet coastal town of Ålesund, Nærø studied classical piano at a young age, learning his craft from the playbooks of Chopin and Rachmaninoff. By age nine, he had discovered the godfathers of minimalism, including Philip Glass and Arvo Part. Later, he would form a jazz trio and the electronic scene came calling.

His first album, 2018’s By Heart, was a spontaneous project recorded in a single day. Its followup, Introspection, came in 2021. A third, From Moments, dropped in 2023, and his most recent album release, All Moments Must Pass, was issued in May 2025 on Piano & Coffee Records.  

He’s currently mapping out his fifth studio album, to be released in 2027.

“It’s forming up to be a very big release, at a bigger scale than I’m the previous one,” he hints. “I get to work with some amazing people that really believe in what I’ve made.”

Megan Moroney cut short her concert Tuesday night (July 28) at Denver’s Ball Arena, due to an unspecified illness.

The country star stopped by the Mile High City for The Cloud 9 Tour, in support of her Billboard 200 chart-topping third studio album.

However, according to various published reports, Moroney performed just three songs before exiting the stage. She later returned to inform fans that she was overcome and wouldn’t complete the set.

“Denver. That was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make & I’m so sorry to cancel the show tonight,” she later wrote on Instagram Stories. “I never ever will give you guys a show that is not 100% and by song 3 I knew that I was not capable of giving that to you guys tonight.”

Before calling time, Moroney completed the songs “Stupid,” “Medicine,” and “Bless Your Heart,” according to Setlist.fm.

“I’m typing this as I’m quite literally bawling my eyes out in my dressing room & it hurts me so much to disappoint you all.”

A new date has been locked in for Aug. 27, with all tickets valid from Tuesday night’s show.

The venue was the first to confirm the cancelation. “Megan is unable to continue her performance this evening due to illness, and we must end the show at this time.” Further updates would be provided “as soon as possible” at ballarena.com, the message continues. “We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your understanding and cooperation.”

Moroney’s arena tour, her biggest yet, got underway May 29 in Columbus, Ohio, and is booked for more than 40 shows stretching through October, including U.S. dates at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, New York City’s Barclays Center and Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena.

Later, she’ll cross the Atlantic for concerts in Paris, London, Oslo and Stockholm, before wrapping the European/U.K. leg Oct. 1 at SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

In March of this year, Moroney experienced cloud 9 firsthand when her album of that name went to the summit of the all-genres Billboard 200 chart, her first leader. “Cloud 9 is a state of mind,” she remarked when the album was first announced, “and I have no doubt this will be the best chapter yet.”

She wasn’t wrong. The 147,000 equivalent album units shifted in its opening cycle marked the biggest week for a country album by a woman in nearly two years, Luminate reports.

The next scheduled date on her Cloud 9 tour is at Moda Center this Saturday, Aug. 1 in Portland, OR.

Read Moroney’s social post in full below.

Denver. That was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make & I’m so sorry to cancel the show tonight.

I never ever will give you guys a show that is not 100% and by song 3 I knew that I was not capable of giving that to you guys tonight.

I’m typing this as I’m quite literally bawling my eyes out in my dressing room & it hurts me so much to disappoint you all.

I will be back August 27, and all tickets purchased for tonight’s show will be honored for the new date.

If you can’t make the rescheduled date refunds are available at the point of purchase.

I’ve never had to do this & I’m truly so sorry.

I love u guys.

Norway is on top, in just about every meaningful way. Its 5.6 million population is blessed with an enviable standard of living, world-beating Winter Olympians, your new favorite soccer player, and a crop of standout recording artists, from electronic DJs and producers Kygo, Röyksopp and Alan Walker, to indie artists Girl In Red, Aurora, Kings of Convenience, and the legendary new wave act a-ha.

With Bergtatt Festival, presented in Luster, Western Norway, on an epic fjord, the Nordic country also boasts one of Europe’s most specular and remote festivals, with a killer, curated lineup.

Billboard’s Lars Brandle made the journey for the 2026 edition, hosted on the first weekend of July, and discovered an event like no other, a musical wonderland powered by a small army of volunteers, all of it playing out in a spot that could be lifted right out the mind of Tolkien.

A holiday in paradise

The Norwegian summer isn’t like currency. You can’t bank it. In a place like Luster, a municipality and village in Vestland county on the inner, eastern end of the Sognefjorden, Europe’s longest fjord, the four seasons can make their appearance before breakfast. No bother. After those long, cold winters, summer in this part of the world is a reward. It’s earned, a coming out party where everyone is invited.

Presented several days after the summer solstice, Bergtatt Festival 2026 invites all those elements. Snowcapped mountains nearby, and days so long a mind can be tricked into considering dinner plans well past midnight. This party, a camping fest, welcomes about 1,500 guests, including 1,000 ticket-buyers, the rest comprised of friends, extended family and VIPs.

It’s a swift sellout.

Founded in 2018, and opening its gates for the first time in 2019, Bergtatt is led by six school friends from Oslo: Oskar Skulberg (booking manager), Anders Mageli (community leader), Nicolai Frantzen (creative leader), Johan Stang (operational leader), Ole Kristian Knudsen (technical leader) and Aksel Mjøen (commercial leader). The seed was planted on a trip to visit the Mageli cabin, the lads sampling some wine.

Today, the event boasts some 30 core, unpaid volunteers. That number grows to about 150 for showtime. And like the co-founders, each helper has their own, specific role to play. Most of that initial launch crew, numbering 10 to 20, remain part of the team.

Each of the founders has a “normal job, which I think gives a certain perspective,” remarks Stang. Bergtatt “is our hobby.”

Bergtatt is different. “Our booking budget is proportionately way too high compared to what’s normal,” Skulberg reckons, “because we do it for fun.” This year, 30 acts and 30 events are booked.

As the fest has matured, it has remained right-sized. Like every other live event on earth, the pandemic did its damage. Two editions were wiped out, and co-founder Mathias Apeland exited to pursue other ventures. The festival survived and thrived, where so many others have imploded under the weight of costs and changing ticket-buying behaviors. It’s a feast for the eyes and ears, a music holiday with a roadtrip.

An early vision was to present the fest on the peak of the Berge mountain, where the family of co-founder Mageli has a property. That logistical nightmare was tamed, sanity prevailed, and the show is now presented at ground level.

The mountain plays its part. The fest gets underway only after a mass hike to the summit, followed by the “Berge Uphill Race,” contested by folks considerably fitter than the rest of us. And then, a performance, this time featuring a stripped-back set by Konradsen. Mother nature flexing in the background. “The most important thing is community and music,” Mageli remarks at the mic. On the walk down, a dance party pumps away in the forest, and presents an opportunity for hundreds to stretch the legs.

Music festivals need an angle. Money is tight, time is money. The United States’ Burning Man is a rite of passage, and owns its place on the calendar. Australia’s Big Red Bash is held in the desert. Others set up on islands, alps, with a-list lineups. 

With Bergtatt Festival, the journey is intrinsic to the experience.

Roadtrip

From Oslo, the capital, 220 miles to the south, the journey cuts through ranges and includes at least one section by ferry. It’s grand scenery, where mountainous woodland meets glacier water, a wilderness that belongs in Middle Earth.

From Bergen, the country’s second city, a drive passes through the Lærdal Tunnel, at 15.2 miles the longest of its kind on earth. Add to that water paths, and there’s a sense of adventure before the action starts. You know it’s something special when the party-goers take snaps, which they do.

The trip, remarks Frantzen, “it tends to be a great filter.”

Living the dream

For the lineup of performers, which included the U.K.’s Tourist; local singer, songwriter and bandleader Fay Wildhagen; enigmatic soulman Pale Jay; Keisha, a large-lunged Swedish artist who blew open the door on her career by posting songs on TikTok; and pianist, composer and electronic artist Vetle Nærø, who performed in the Dale Church, established around 1220-1250 (a “very special event,” he later says), Bergtatt is an eye-opener.

“It’s a dream here, in such a wonderful location, and an incredible sound system,” remarks Faux Tales, the electronic music producer from Bern, Switzerland, during his day three set in the Bergheim room, a 100-year-old cow barn on any other week. “Enjoy that beautiful festival,” he remarks.

Several of the performers took multiple flights to get here. The members of Konradsen sailed. No one gets to Luster without putting in the work.

Once inside the gates, it’s fresh air. A pop-up tattoo desk offers keepsakes of the festival. Elk burgers are on the menu. To the side of the main stage is a sauna. And yes, the hardy locals swim in the chilly fjord as the bands rock out.

The festival counts a string of sponsors, but doesn’t rely on government handouts.

“It’s one of these things that I’ve always wanted to do, but has never fit the schedule,” Wildhagen tells Billboard. The beloved local artist and her band was meant to stay off the road this year to complete work on a new album. When she received the invite to perform, “I was like, ‘we have to come.’” With her day one headline performance, Wildhagen closed the chapter that is her award-winning 2024 album Let’s Keep It In The Family (via Warner Music Norway). “It’s been a dream to come here for many years.”

What the future holds

The 10-year anniversary of Bergtatt is on the horizon. Before that, there’s another event to plan for. A headliners wishlist has been drawn up. It’s a work in progress. “We set ourselves some goals for the next year,” explains Skulberg, “and then we measure it after that. It’s in our mindset to just look for improvements all the time. We try to focus on the next year, every time. But we want to continue peaking or improving,” for “a much better product and experience.”

After the tents are packed away, and the site cleared, the team reaches out to ticket-buyers for feedback. The inner circle doesn’t tune into the crowd when it comes to the content. That’s all done in-house.

“We can never compete with big festivals on headliners,” notes Skulberg. That said, the top end of town can’t compete with a holiday in paradise.

Expect the next show to be better, maybe bigger.

“We see ourselves as curators of the weekend from when they arrive until they leave,” comments Frantzen. “They’re in our hands for three, four days. And we curate their journey through our artistic vision. It’s not just a lot of concerts and bookings, but a whole program.”

For the founders, their own families are growing. An expansion to the site to accommodate more party-goers, isn’t out of the question.

“We could probably grow it a little bit more this way and that way,” Mageli admits. “I mean, we could always push it a bit more. But again, it comes down to the experience that we want to create. We’re in a very small community. And we’re also conscious about our footprints, the amount of people, and the cars.”

Frantzen has the final word. “We want people to leave here with a feeling of being part of a group, of something bigger. That’s easier when you’re not too many people. Instead of growing in size, we want to be the best boutique festival.”

Fay Wildhagen chose the right time, and the right place, to draw curtains on her 2024 project, Let’s Keep It In The Family.

The award-winning Norwegian singer, songwriter and bandleader waved her “final goodbye to that era” with a headline performance earlier this month at the 2026 Bergtatt Festival, one stacked with songs from Family, her third studio album, and rearranged fan favorites.

There’s more new music to come. “I have a bag full of demos that I’m listening to in the car, and in hotel rooms. I feel like my head is so full of music,” she tells Billboard in a chat at the edge of the mighty Sognefjord fjord.

The next album will be independently released through the Orchard, on Wildhagen’s own label, ending a 10-year partnership with Warner Music Norway.

“It just feels cool to try something new, and just go for it,” she enthuses. “And just give it a real try before I’m done.”

Wildhagen is in sparkling form. Raised in Oslo, the capital, she signed with Warner Music Norway as a 21-year-old and released her Spellemannprisen-nominated debut album, Snow, in 2015. Her sophomore album, Borders, arrived in 2018, opening doors for critical praise and concerts across Europe. Fay produced the 2023 album Møtested – en hyllest til Anne Grete Preus, and collected the Spellemannprisen (the Norwegian Grammys) for producer of the year — a moment that touched something deep inside.

“I cried when they gave it to me,” she recounts. “Nobody quite understands how much time goes into the writing, and the producing, just making and recreating sounds, turning and tossing them around, and trying things. For hours and hours and hours.” Getting recognized for the work that few people see, “yes, I cried a lot.”

Family was a seven-year itch. “It took time for me to find the right path for it. And find the home for it,” she recalls. “And also, it needed a lot of courage to write it properly, honest and true.”

On Family, she wrote, produced and arranged all 15 songs and its instruments, with the exception of the first single “Reason,” which was co-written with Øystein Greni, frontman and main songwriter of the Norwegian rock band Bigbang.

With the studio calling this year, Wildhagen took a detour to enjoy the Bergtatt experience. The journey was something else. With her partner, Wildhagen drove from Oslo, 220 miles to the south, completed hair-raising mountain passes, all of it to tick-off that bucket-list item.

The boutique fest in Luster, Western Norway, presented on the banks of the epic fjord and surrounded by striking, snow-capped mountains, just might be most picturesque setting for a live music event, anywhere.

“It’s been a dream to come here for many years,” she tells Billboard. “It has never fit the schedule, so it’s never just been right.” The festival “is one of these things that I’ve always wanted to do. It’s really amazing.”

While Coachella typically kicks off summer music festival season in the U.S., Lollapalooza is far from the end of the season this year.

This weekend’s Lolla in Chicago — going down July 30 through Aug. 2 and headlined by pop stars including Charli xcx, JENNIE, Tate McRae, Lorde and Olivia Dean — will be followed by two brand-new festivals in Southern California: the one-day, Olivia Rodrigo-created Daisy Chain Fields and the two-day, Santa Monica beach concert Ocean Way Festival.

On the new Billboard Pop Shop Podcast, Katie & Keith are talking about each of the festivals, breaking down the performers (Rodrigo, Chappell Roan, Stevie Nicks and more on Daisy Chain’s all-women lineup; Dean, The Killers, Jack White and more at Ocean Way) and deciding that we’ll probably need to take a Pop Shop field trip to the beach for the latter. Listen now:

Also on the show, we’ve got chart news on how Gracie Abrams achieves her first No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with Daughter From Hell and how Ella Langley holds tight at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for a 15th week with “Choosin’ Texas” — but could a certain country superstar knock her out of the top slot next week with their brand-new song?

The Billboard Pop Shop Podcast is your one-stop shop for all things pop on Billboard‘s weekly charts. You can always count on a lively discussion about the latest pop news, fun chart stats and stories, new music, and guest interviews with music stars and folks from the world of pop. Casual pop fans and chart junkies can hear Billboard‘s executive digital director, West Coast, Katie Atkinson and Billboard’s managing director, charts and data operations, Keith Caulfield every week on the podcast, which can be streamed on Billboard.com or downloaded in Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast provider. (Click here to listen to the previous edition of the show on Billboard.com.)

Rock the Ryman will return to the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Sept. 1. Celebrating the intersection of rock & roll and country music, the second staging of the event will again honor the legacy and impact of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees who have graced the Ryman stage. The event will be hosted by 2014 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee John Oates.

Featured artists include Wynonna, YOLA, Devon Allman, ROME, Sam Bush and Spencer Sutherland, plus more to be announced. Each artist will perform songs by Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees who were influential to their careers. The concert will explore how country music has shaped rock & roll and how the genre has merged with today’s Americana, country and beyond.

The event is sponsored by Gibson, the iconic American instrument brand, and Gibson Gives, its philanthropic division supporting music education and wellness initiatives worldwide.

The inaugural Rock the Ryman concert, on March 1, 2025, was hosted by Charlie Worsham. The event featured performances by The War and Treaty, Gavin DeGraw, Maddie & Tae and more.

Rock the Ryman is the latest event in a long-term collaboration between the two institutions since Ryman’s official designation as a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark in 2022. The collaboration also includes a permanent exhibit on the Ryman daytime tour that features a rotating collection of memorabilia and stories from Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees who have performed on its iconic stage.

Tickets to the Rock the Ryman concert go on sale to the general public on Friday, July 31 at 10 a.m. CT at ryman.com. Proceeds from the event will help preserve and celebrate the history of rock & roll and support education initiatives at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Ryman Auditorium. More information about the Rock the Ryman concert, Rock Hall at the Ryman exhibit, daytime tours and shows can be found at the Ryman site.

New additions to the Rock Hall at the Ryman tour exhibit for summer/fall 2026 include: