Fresh Made It / Defiant Records
This week, the New York City Parks Department announced the lineup for SummerStage 2026, their annual free concert series. That lineup includes the sixth installment of MIKE's Young World festival, which will be headlined by New York legend Max B alongside MIKE & The Band of the Century. Tickets are free, but you'll have to RSVP online if you want to attend.
The full lineup for Young World 2026 has yet to be announced, but based on the July 11 show falling in between dates for his Home on the Range tour with Earl Sweatshirt and Harrison, I wouldn't be too surprised to see the POMPEII // UTILITY collaborators at the festival, if not on the flyer.
Read Next: The myth and magic of Max B’s Harlem
Since its 2019 debut, Young World has become one of the preeminent rap showcases for in-the-know hip-hop fans. Past lineups have featured everyone from Noname, MAVI, and Navy Blue to skaiwater, Jay Critch, and Baby Osama, not to mention Georgia Anne Muldrow, AKAI SOLO, and Roc Marciano.
"I don't want it to be Rolling Loud. Ever. I want it to be a festival that actually honors rap music," MIKE told OkayPlayer in 2023. "Our music scene and our community — the whole thing has always been about trying to bring people from the different sides of it together."
Still, cinching Max B for a free concert might be the festival's biggest get to date. The Harlem rapper was released from federal prison this past November, and while he's performed a handful of concerts up and down the East Coast, those have primarily been club appearances.
Max is set to hit the road with French Montana later in May for a joint tour, which should give fans a sampler of what they might expect at Herbert Von King Park in July. (If French comes out to perform, I only pray he plays "Shot Caller:" shawty got potential, I could be her sponsor / met her backstage at a Young World concert...).
Revisit The FADER's essay on the return of Max B.
