Photo Credit: Julia Drummond, Courtesy of BRIC

As summer rapidly approaches, BRIC has unveiled the full artist lineup for the 46th annual Celebrate Brooklyn! music festival. Returning to the Lena Horne Bandshell in Prospect Park, the longest-running free performing arts festival in New York carries on its tradition of high-profile public programming this year with 18 unique shows plotted from June 8 to August 24. Among the highlights are shows from Meshell Ndegeocello, Fishbone, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, Thee Sacred Souls, Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul and Sinkane, with more still to be announced.

BRIC–or Brooklyn Information & Culture–will kick off its seasonal celebration on June 8 with a special Family Day event, led by the indigenous-influenced electronica of The Halluci Nation, alongside openers Xiuhtezcatl and Asase Yaa Youth Ensemble. More thrilling entries, including a Juneteenth celebration headlined by the legendary DJ Spinna, will build steam to the festival’s third annual collaboration with NPR Music’s Tiny Desk, which will bring on the R&B revivalism of Thee Sacred Souls and funk fusion of Adi Oasis on June 22. The following Saturday, 45-year ska-punk innovators Fishbone will arrive at the bandshell, joining Son Rompe Pera for the first-ever punk presentation at Celebrate Brooklyn!

The excitement will continue on July 12 with a special evening program titled “Travels Over Feeling: Celebrating Arthur Russell.” Aligned with the release of Richard King’s comprehensive new biography of the same name, this engagement will communicate Russell’s complex personhood with a performance of his 1983 album Tower of Meaning by the esteemed Wordless Music Orchestra, followed by a set from iconic Paradise Garage DJ François K. The next day, Afrobeat torchbearer Kuti will take the stage with his father’s former ensemble Egypt 80.

To ring in BRIC’s third month of shows, the visionary singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ndegeocello will unveil her expansive forthcoming concept album, No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin. Ndegeocello’s inspiring and multifaceted sonic portrait of the revered artist and activist will follow a set from Memphis’ laser-focused rising soul star Talibah Safiya. On the next Saturday, August 10, the Lena Horne Bandshell will host the final performances of BRIC’s summer season so far, welcoming Belgian electronic and avant-pop dynamic duo Adigéry & Pupul, genre-bending Sudanese-American jam star Sinkane and NYC queer club staple Ushka.

On the festival’s 2024 return, Saidah Blount–the new Executive Director of BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!–has shared, “I am absolutely thrilled to share this vibrant and diverse festival lineup that embraces our ‘Raised By Brooklyn’ theme… Across 10 weeks, you’ll hear music from the Caribbean diaspora, global rock and dance beats, as well as hometown heroes presenting orchestral works, powerful dance performances, and one of the most acclaimed films ever from a Brooklyn-born director. I’m hoping that everyone who comes out to the Lena Horne Bandshell this summer has the opportunity to see a bit of ‘their Brooklyn’ in this dynamic lineup.”

Admittance to all shows in BRIC’s Celebrate Brooklyn! series is free to all attendees. To RSVP, learn more about the festival’s full schedule, and stay updated on newly-announced shows, visit bricartsmedia.org/celebrate-brooklyn/.