North to Shore Festival Returns: New Format, Big Stars Shine on the Horizon

Hey Jersey, it's showtime — and there's headliners aplenty.

The Prudential North to Shore Festival begins Saturday, June 14, and events this year include the Hot 97 Summer Jam on Friday, June 20; Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on Sunday, June 22; Jon Stewart, John Mulaney and Pete Davidson, June 27; and LL Cool J's Rock the Bells on Saturday, June 28, all at the Prudential Center in Newark.

There's also the Shadow of the City featuring Bleachers on June 28, and George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic on Sunday, June 29, both at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park.

It's Jesey unique, said David Rodriguez, executive producer and executive vice president of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, the producer of the fest.

“What makes North to Shore a little bit different is it's run by a not-for-profit organization,” Rodriguez said. “We're not a large national concert producer — we’re an organization that cares about the communities throughout New Jersey.”

The North to Shore Community Arts Awards of up to $10,000 is given to artists, arts organizations, nonprofits and small businesses to produce and present free festival events, such as the Asbury Underground music and art crawl, which takes place Saturday, June 21, and brings hundreds to downtown Asbury Park.

The aim of the awards is to support New Jersey’s creative economy by providing a platform that amplifies the voices of under-recognized artists and arts organizations. The state is outlaying $3 million for production costs this year; ticket revenues have exceeded $25 million in the fest's first two years.

“We link with community leadership in the cities,” Rodriguez said. “We're not trying to re-create the wheel. We're just trying to help push the car down the road with the people who are already working so hard.”

NJ talent at North to Shore

Comedian Jon Stewart, a Lawrenceville native who now lives in Colts Neck, made a surprise appearance at the Asbury Underground last summer when he played drums for a newly composed rock group called Church and State at the Asbury Park Brewery on Cookman Avenue.

“You are witnessing a premiere performance,” said Stewart from behind the drums. “We have never played in public … (but) we are delighted to be here and please lower your expectations.”

“There’s a lot of celebration here of New Jersey talent,” Rodiguez said. “I joked that Jon Stewart was a part of the Asbury Underground last year, and this year we’re presenting him at the arena and the show's already sold out. That someone like Jon Stewart, who doesn’t have to be part of this festival, choses to be part of this festival is because he understands this festival has a soul.”

Soul and a hot hip-hop show. The Hot 97 Summer Jam returns to New Jersey, where it was previously staged at MetLife and Giants Stadium in East Rutherford.

Last year's Summer Jam was held at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, and this year A Boogie, Gunna, and GloRilla are headlining.

“We want to make sure this is a festival for everyone,” Rodriguez said. “Look at a city like Asbury Park — sometimes you don’t see the diversity that exists in Asbury on the boardwalk that truly exists in the town. Same thing can be said for Atlantic City. We want anyone in New Jersey to take a look at this festival and say, 'Hey, there’s something for me.' ”

That would include jokes in Arabic at the An Arabic Night with Bassem Youssef, which takes place Saturday, June 22, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

“It helps that it's happening the day before the Saudi Arabia team plays Club World Cup (at MetLife Stadium on Monday, June 23),” Rodriguez said.

Asbury Park and Newark (and Atlantic City)

This year, the fest runs two weeks, June 14 to 29, instead of three, primarily in Newark and Asbury Park, with a only handful of events in Atlantic City.

“We really wanted this programming to reach the residents themselves,” Rodriguez said. “I think we found in the first couple of years it was probably serving tourists more than residents (in Atlantic City), so we said let’s take same amount of money and double our efforts and not just do a week of programming in Atlantic City — but let’s do 52 weeks of programs. Fewer headliners but more programs.”

The fest has drawn a total audience of over 500,000 to more than 650 shows in 250 venues in Newark, Asbury Park and Atlantic City over the last two years, making it New Jersey’s largest summer arts event.

A portion of all ticket sales will directly benefit Growing Healthy Pantries, which is a partnership between Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, FoodBank of South Jersey, Fulfill, Mercer Street Friends, Norwescap and Feeding America, all which address food security statewide.

Blue state South by Southwest

The festival was conceived by Gov. Phil Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy in 2023 as a celebration of Jersey arts and innovation, and as a type of Blue state artistic answer to the South by Southwest festival annually held in Red state Texas.

“Not to get political” said Murphy in 2023, “but the South by Southwest festival is not terribly diverse. I've got nothing against Austin, but I've got a lot against the freedoms that Texas takes away from its residents.”

The Murphys are often seen at the North to Shore shows. Gov. Murphy introduced Eric B and Rakim when they played the fest at the Stone Pony in 2023.

Music stars and wannabes are still branding up with North to Shore, while changes are happening at South by Southwest . While he is not on the ballot, will Murphy be as supportive for North to Shore during this election year?

“I can tell you that our goal is to make this so positive and so financial impactful for the state that no one would ever want to see the support go away,” Rodriguez said. “That’s all you can do at this point. We firmly believe that we are an amazing investment.”

Visit northtoshore.com for tickets, more information and a complete lineup. See below for highlights:

North to Shore 2025

The String Cheese Incident at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, June 17

Black Creative Economy Summit at Symphony Hall, Newark, June 18 to 20

Natalia Lafourcade: Canionera Tour, at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, June 19

Springwood Avenue Sounds at Blackbird Commons, Asbury Park, June 19

Hot 97 Summer Jam with A Boogie, Gunna, GloRilla and more at the Prudentuial Center, Newark, June 20

Third Eye Blind with Stars at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, June 20

Asbury Underground, downtown Asbury Park, June 21

Lawrence with Allen Stone at Stone Pony Summer Stage, Asbury Park, June 21

Brenda K. Starr at the House of Independents, Asbury Park, June 21

The Smithereens with Marshall Crenshaw at Wonder Bar, Asbury Park, June 21

Moe at Count Basie Center for the Arts, Red Bank, June 21

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler at the Prudential Center, June 22

Slightly Stoopid with Iration at Stone Pony Summer Stage, June 22

Jack's Mannequin at Stone Pony Summer Stage, June 26

Stone Temple Pilots with Parlor Mob at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, June 26

Streetlight Manifesto at Stone Pony Summer Stage, June 27

Jon Stewart, John Mulaney and Pete Davidson, at the Prudential Center, June 27

Shadow of the City featuring Bleachers at Stone Pony Summer Stage, June 28

Rock the Bells with Busta Rhymes, Redman, Eric B and Rakim, Too Shore, Fabolous, Remy Ma , Big Daddy Kane and more at the Prudential Center, June 28

Fantastic Cat and John Gallagher Jr. at the Wonder Bar, June 28

George Clinton and P-Funk with Living Colour at the Stone Pony Summer Stage, June 29

Gregory Porter with Sounds of April and Randall, at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, June 29.

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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at cjordan@app.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: North to Shore Festival returns with a format change, big stars and hope for the future