June 19-21, 2026, Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO / Lawrence KS)

Happy ‘official’ start of Summer and Juneteenth weekend-

To remind, Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when troops arrived in Texas, to announce the end of the Civil War and ensure the freedom of the last enslaved Black Americans, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

And, astronomical summer starts Sunday at 3:24am local time- The more you know…!

In World Cup news, Leo Messi painted another masterpiece with his first ‘hat trick’ (aka three goals) at the first-ever match in KC, and the FIFA Fan Fest remains busy (with $19 beers!!), though our attempt to see Chainsmokers last weekend, was canceled due to weather. They rescheduled to appear on Sunday (RSVP required).

Let’s look at the weekend in Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings from June 19^th to 21^st.

(ticket hyperlinks are embedded in each show’s headline)

FRIDAY JUNE 19

Weird Al Yankovic, June 19, Morton Amph,$26-$174

Weird Al brings his legendary full-production multimedia comedy rock show back to the concert stage with his BIGGER & WEIRDER 2026 Tour, playing his iconic hits as well as some never-performed-live-before fan favorites. Al’s long-time band is joined by four additional players to create a super-sized concert experience.

“Weird Al” Yankovic is the biggest-selling comedy recording artist in history. A 5-time Grammy Award winner, he is best known for his parodies of the biggest musical artists over the last 4 decades, including Madonna, Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift, Queen, U2 and Lady Gaga, all with their personal blessings. His last album Mandatory Fun is the only comedy album in history to debut at #1 on the Billboard Top 200.

Opener Puddles Pity Party… is certainly unique and has to be seen rather than described. The 7-foot sad clown with a golden voice has amassed over 900K YouTube subscribers and performed sold out shows including at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, London’s Soho Theatre and a residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Zac Harmon and the Drive- Concert for a Child, June 19, Evergy Plaza- Topeka, Free

This year’s Concert for a Child will be a FREE community concert featuring Zac Harmon at Evergy Plaza. Harmon is a Jackson, MS award-winning blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter and the band just released a live album in March, as a follow up to their 2021 studio release, Long As I Got My Guitar. Opening up will be local band The Mix, led by Mike Babb and are a local blues and classic rock group playing music from the ’60s-’80s.

The Capper Foundation concert is a benefit for Pediatric Services, including the Children’s Abilities Fund (CAF). This fund is a lifeline for families facing overwhelming financial challenges while raising a child with a disability. It assists families in covering the unreimbursed cost of therapy services and other essential services not covered by Medicaid, commercial insurance, or private pay. Additionally, the fund bridges the funding gap for program expenses that insurance and other funding sources fail to cover.

We covered the benefit in 2022 with a trio of talented guitarists and can attest to it being a fun night for a very worthy cause.

Like Six o’ Clock (play), through June 26, KC Melting Pot,$21.50-$32.50

The run continues, Wednesday through next Friday- Lewis Morrow’s work has a world premiere right here in KC with this initial run and concludes another successful season for KC Melting Pot!

In a quiet tire shop owned by Bennie, the shock of a nearby factory shooting reverberates throughout the city. With the shooter still at large, business grinds to a halt as Bennie, Claudette, and Roderick find themselves grappling with the chilling reality that they may have personal connections to the shooter, forcing them to confront their own emotions, biases, and moral dilemmas.

As they navigate their uneasy reflections, the weight of their shared history and the aftermath of violence hang heavily in the air. Like Six O’Clock is a raw unflinching look at the choices we make and how we justify them.

SATURDAY JUNE 20

Common, Juneteenth-KC Heritage Festival, June 20, 18th and Vine, free

The 15th Annual Juneteenth KC Heritage Festival is excited to welcome what should be over 25,000 visitors to the 18th & Vine Historic Jazz District in honor of the Juneteenth holiday – commemorating the day in 1865 when the last enslaved African Americans learned of their freedom, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued.

Legendary Chicago hip-hop artist Common will perform and is out touring in support his collaborative album The Auditorium Vol. 1, made with iconic producer Pete Rock. The tour celebrates the return of classic 90s boom-bap, featuring his signature conscious, freestyle MCing over Rock’s soulful, classic beats and look to hear other hits as well.

Passion Pit, June 20, Truman, $47

To celebrate nearly twenty years since their initial Chunk of Change EP, Passion Pit will be releasing the Pretty Penny EP, the debut EP’s companion piece bearing many of the band’s hallmark production and songwriting characteristics but highlighting singer-songwriter-producer Michael Angelakos’ growth and musical development. The EP will serve as an collection of songs that honor the past while eyeing the new material that intended to release with the full band (a first for Passion Pit) in the near future.

Passion Pit began as the solo project of Angelakos. starting alone in his dorm room in Boston, and then in an apartment in Cambridge where he lived with four other friends in 2006. The band released breakthrough album Manners on Angelakos’ birthday in 2009, and it sold over 30,000 copies in the first week. The follow-up, Gossamer, was released in 2012 and landed number four on the Billboard charts in the US, as well as Top 20 in Australia and Canada with single, “Take A Walk”, going over 2x platinum.

Radkey, June 20, RINO Benefit, $20 or PWYC

Radkey returns with another local date in KC, this time bringing along Friendly Thieves and Land Lion, along with live comedy from Brittany Tilander and Aaron Scarbrough, for a benefit night with proceeds go towards AIIRKC to help support families affected by ICE.

As mentioned previous, the three alt-punk brothers from St. Joseph, MO have an upcoming new album, Bedroom Sand (out July 14), recorded at Syracuse University mid-last year while students were gone for the summer. With help from a professor, Radkey snuck onto campus to record in the School of Music’s state-of-the-art studio.

SUNDAY JUNE 21

Alex Warren, June 21, T-Mobile Center, $45-$221

He’s extra-Ordinary! Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Alex Warren‘s 2026 is out on his Finding Family on the Road (also billed as Little Orphan Alex Live) North American arena tour, which is his first-ever headline arena tour, in support of platinum-certified debut album You’ll Be Alright, Kid (and note that there are already preorders for a new album out in late August).

He is also contributing $1 from every ticket sold to Camp Kesem, providing free camps and programs for kids with parents fighting cancer—through his partnership with PLUS1.

Hit single “Ordinary” topped charts worldwide, remaining at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 10 weeks, marking the longest running solo #1 of 2025. The song hit 16 weeks at #1 on Billboard’s Pop Airplay radio chart, breaking the record for the longest reign ever on that chart. It also spent 10 weeks as #1 on the Billboard Global 200 songs chart, eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 Excl. U.S. chart and 13 weeks at #1 on the Official UK Singles Chart. Long story short- it was big.

Appropriately on a Sunday, join the Warren faithful downtown (and arrive early for opening musician / actor brothers, Nat & Alex Wolff) for what should be a very uplifting show.

Alison Krauss and Union Station w Jerry Douglas, June 21, TPAC- Topeka, $64-$271

Alison Krauss and Union Station, featuring Jerry Douglas, are touring North America on their “Arcadia 2026 Tour” to celebrate their new studio album Arcadia, released in late March and their first full-length release in fourteen years. The legendary bluegrass and roots outfit brings together five renowned solo artists—Alison Krauss (fiddle/vocals), Jerry Douglas (Dobro/vocals), Ron Block (banjo/guitar), Barry Bales (bass), and newest addition, IIIrd Tyme Out’s Russell Moore (tenor vocals/mandolin).

Krauss has won 27 Grammy Awards, which is really all you need to know as to why you should attend. Moore is the most awarded male vocalist in the history of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), with six total wins, and has guided his group to more than 50 industry honors including seven IBMA Vocal Group of the Year titles. Douglas is known as a master of the dobro and has 16 Grammy Awards himself. This will be a night of musicianship at the very top pinnacle.

National / International act coming through the Midwest / Kansas City area? Please email details to johnc@weheartmusic.com with a good lead time to be considered for Show Preview and Show Coverage.