Summer concert season is back in the Triangle. Don’t miss these 7 outdoor shows.
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Check out this roundup of the top outdoor concerts, movies, festivals, patios and rooftop bars to enjoy around the Triangle this summer.
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Summer and outdoor concerts are practically synonymous.
With the COVID-19 pandemic waning, concert season is in full force. While there are dozens of shows in the Triangle — both free and ticketed — in all kinds of genres in all kinds of venues, here are some outdoor shows we’re looking forward to.
Tickets can be bought through livenation.com unless indicated otherwise.
Take 6, with Najee
The details: July 7, N.C. Museum of Art, Joseph M. Bryan Jr. Theater in the Museum Park, Raleigh. Tickets are $35 for non-members and $31.50 for members. ncartmuseum.org
For 25 years, the N.C. Museum of Art has been the spot for outdoor concerts, drawing local, regional and national acts. That holds true this year, as a new jazz series has been interspersed alongside acts like Old Crow Medicine Show and Herbie Hancock as well as North Carolina’s Watchhouse. (Mark Oct. 1 on your calendar for that last one.) The museum, in a news release, said the jazz concerts are a result of visitor requests for more live jazz. This show features Take 6, an a cappella group that’s won 10 Grammy Awards. Get prepped for “an evening of straight-ahead jazz, pop, adult R&B, doo-wop and the blues,” the museum said. Najee, a contemporary flutist, is the opening act.
The Chicks
The details: July 12, Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Raleigh
The last time The Chicks came to Raleigh, it was a super sultry night, even by North Carolina standards. The trio hit all the foot-stomping high notes of their catalogue, from “Goodbye Earl” to “Wide Open Spaces” and “Not Ready to Make Nice.” And they didn’t shy away from weaving politics into their show, targeting North Carolina’s House Bill 2, which at the time, required people to use the bathroom that corresponds to the gender on their birth certificate. Since then, the band has dropped Dixie from its name, but the trio and their moxie still go hand in hand. On this tour, Natalie Maines and company will perform songs off their equally fiery album, “Gaslighter,” which, when it was released in 2020, was their first album in nearly 14 years.
Barenaked Ladies, Gin Blossoms and Toad the Wet Sprocket
The details: July 16, Red Hat Amphitheater, Raleigh
It might seem like Barenaked Ladies have a standing invite to visit Raleigh every summer, and for good reason. The Canadian band’s upbeat music offers plenty of singalong moments, and they’re always joined by (now) classic retro bands on the lineup. This summer, Gin Blossoms and Toad the Wet Sprocket will have concert-goers of a certain age flashing back to the mid- and late-’90s.
Kehlani, Rico Nasty and Destin Conrad
The details: July 30, Red Hat Amphitheater, Raleigh
Kehlani has been making music for over a decade, but she’s having a moment right now. On July 30, the R&B singer will launch her tour at Raleigh’s Red Hat Amphitheater. The tour comes off the recent success of her “Blue Water Road” LP, which debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 3 on Billboard’s R&B Album chart. She told Rolling Stone this month that she feels good about the new music she has been releasing. “It’s been interesting to navigate how different this process was from the last album and the albums before,” she said. “I’m heading on tour, and haven’t headlined my own tour in five years. That’s where my head has been since the day it dropped. How am I gonna perform this? That’s my favorite part.”
Smokey Robinson
The details: Aug. 19, Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary
Robinson’s hits and deep tracks — with the Miracles and as a solo artist — could easily pack a show lasting several hours. “The Tracks of My Tears,” “The Tears of a Clown,” “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me,” we could go on. Robinson, now 82, has done it all and has received some of the music industry’s highest awards: Grammy Awards, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Songwriter’s Hall of Fame inductee and a National Medal of Arts, to name a few. In other words, a Smokey Robinson concert is like helping him write a page of a history book.
Wu-Tang Clan & Nas
The details: Sept. 17, Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Raleigh
It’s safe to say Wu-Tang Clan and Nas are legends in their own rights. Put them together for a co-headlining tour, and you’ve got a show for the ages. The East-Coast hip-hop icons will bring their New York State of Mind tour to Raleigh as part of a 25-city tour. Both have dozens of hits and platinum albums between them, yet only one Grammy win. Nas finally won Best Rap Album in 2021 for “King’s Disease.” He released “King’s Disease II” last year as a follow-up, earning another nomination. While the tour doesn’t kick off until Aug. 30, making setlists unknown, we wouldn’t be surprised to see some on-stage collaborations in the show.
Black Pumas, The Record Company and The Heavy Heavy
The details: Oct. 2, Red Hat Amphitheater, Raleigh
The story of Eric Burton, lead singer of Black Pumas, is the stuff movies are made of. Picture this: a young man who grew up singing in the church develops his love of music busking on streets from California to Texas. Over just a few years, he meets up with veteran guitarist Adrian Quesada to form the Black Pumas. Success comes quickly: a critically acclaimed album, chart-topping songs (“Colors” was everywhere) and Grammy nominations. Not too shabby. The group is one of the headline acts for the Mighty Giveback concert held by Band Together and United Way of the Greater Triangle. Money raised at the concert will go to Triangle nonprofits that help with housing accessibility. (Band Together has a second concert Oct. 28 with country band Turnpike Troubadours.)
This story was originally published June 29, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
