September 25-27, 2026, Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO / Lawrence KS)

Rockers on the mend—

Lionel Richie– following some health concerns, he had to have a heart procedure and is taking a break from the road (Rod Stewart, on the other hand, has scheduled new dates).

Michael Kiwanuka – the UK folkster apparently had a stroke and has been recovering, with new album, Fudge, due now soon.

East Bay Ray – The Dead Kennedys’ guitarist has recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

Tobin Esperance (Papa Roach)- an unexpected emergency had to have the band pull out of the Larger Than Life Festival, with no other details known.

We wish them all a speedy recovery.

Let’s look at the Weekend in Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings from September 25^th to September 27^th.

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

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25

Somewhere Festival– Wichita, Sept 25, 26, $122-$962

Somewhere Festival is set to take over on its September 25th-26th return to downtown Wichita.

From acclaimed country artists ERNEST, Cooper Alan, and Logan Mize, to electronic favorites Eli & Fur, vocalist Kaleena Zanders, rising artists Just Jayne and Jaelen Johnston, and more add to an already expansive lineup spanning country, electronic, indie, hip-hop, soul, singer-songwriter, and local music.

It’s already become one of the Midwest’s most distinctive emerging music events, bringing together nationally recognized artists, emerging talent, and Wichita’s creative community for two days of live music, art, food, immersive experiences, and community engagement.

Friday, September 25th will feature performances from Bailey Zimmerman, DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal), Ian Munsick, Evan Honer, ME N Ü, Night Tales (Presenting CLR), and more.

Saturday, September 26 will be headlined by ERNEST, Two Friends, Bob Moses (Club Set), Cooper Alan, Eli & Fur, Kaleena Zanders, Cure for Paranoia, and additional artists across multiple stages throughout downtown Wichita.

The Tribal Roots Beat Bus returns as one of the festival’s most distinctive community stages and highlights Indigenous, regional, and emerging artists.

The Be The People Block Party (free, outside the grounds) will once again connect attendees with local and national organizations working across issues including mental health, addiction recovery, education, economic mobility, civic engagement, and creative expression, offering interactive experiences that encourage continued community engagement.

Holding Absence, Arm’s Length, Sept 26- Granada-Lawrence,$29.50-$37.98

South Wales trio Holding Absence has released a new single, ‘Heaven’, from their album, ‘Modern Life Is Lonely’, just out on Sumerian Records.

Vocalist Lucas Woodland shares, “for our fourth and final single from MLIL, we’re ecstatic to release our song “Heaven”! This one feels like a classic HA song, with a heart-wrenching message and an epic chorus, but of course, repackaged into our newer style ”

The new album is a modern nod to Blur’s 1993 album ‘Modern Life Is Rubbish’ and strives to capture the essence of what it means to be in a moment in time that is as complex as it is captive. Woodland, alongside guitarist Scott Carey and bassist Benjamin Elliot are best-known for their previous trilogy of albums – 2019’s ‘Holding Absence’, 2021’s ‘The Greatest Mistake Of My Life’ and 2023’s ‘The Noble Art Of Self Destruction’.

Pitbull w Lil Jon, Sept 25, Morton Amph,$101-$483

Mr. Worldwide is back! The global superstar Pitbull returns with the I’m Back Tour, marking a massive outing with special guest and Grammy Award winner Lil Jon (.”Yeah! Ok!!).

As reported by Billboard Boxscore, Pitbull has grossed more than $250 million and sold more than 4.7 million tickets globally throughout his career. His last run, Party After Dark Tour, was the biggest solo tour of his career with over 50 dates in 13 countries. The latest road outing kicked off in FL in May and KC is the penultimate show before wrapping Saturday in Shakopee, MN.

Beyond music, Pitbull continues to spotlight the transformative work of SLAM! charter schools, leveraging music as a universal language to unite and inspire communities while empowering the next generation. Last time in FL, we ate at his Miami Grill…was ok.

President w Showing Teeth, Cenobia, Sept 25, Warehouse on Broadway, sold out AF

We’ve been a believer of this band from their beginning! The multi-million streaming, UK-based collective PRESIDENT are out in support of new and debut album, Blood of Your Empire, out now via Atlantic Records.

We saw them live earlier this year, supporting Bad Omens and are now headlining dates (all sold out) wrapping up in Dallas on October 14.

“Blood Of Your Empire was born out of my own struggle with existential crisis and trying to make sense of belief, mortality, and humanity’s relationship with faith,” President says.

The album cover is a Eugène Delacroix painting, The Battle of Poitiers, which, consequently, hangs in the Louvre.

Deer Tick, Sept 25, recordBar,$35.55

Deer Tick have a new ninth album, Coin-O-Matic, featuring lead single “Mary Singletary” all out now, via Dave Matthews’ ATO Records..

The album centers on “the hidden histories of the band’s home state of Rhode Island, where the everyday dramas of working-class families long collided with the menace of the mafia underworld,” according to a press release. The Coin-O-Matic title is a reference the cigarette-vending-machine company front of lProvidence mobster Raymond Patriarca, which is pictured on the album cover

Frontman John McCauley recalled growing up where you saw mobsters on the news and at local restaurants: “They were criminals but also very colorful characters, and I wanted the album to partly reflect a certain nostalgia for that kind of seediness.”

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26

Sturgill Simpson (Johnny Blue Skies), Sept 26, T-Mobile Center,$42-$166

Johnny Blue Skies & the Dark Clouds hit the road again with longer sets and fuller grooves, and also saying this might be the last for a while, as they are considering a hiatus following.

No opening acts, just the band rocking as hard and relentlessly as possible for every minute possible.

New album Mutiny After Midnight is out now via High Top Mountain/Atlantic Outpost and hope they play their take on Eddie Murphy‘s “Party All The Time.” Regardless, it will be loose and fun.

Jitney (play), thru Sept 26, KC Melting Pot,$21.50-$32.50

Last chance! KC Melting Pot Theatre is KC’s oldest professional Black theater, and opens its 12th season with August Wilson’s Jitney, a cornerstone of the playwright’s famed American Century Cycle.

Set in a Pittsburgh gypsy cab station in the 1970s, Jitney follows the men at Becker’s Car Service, drivers who built their own transportation business from the ground up, a self-made enterprise born of ingenuity and necessity, serving a community the official system refused to see. As urban renewal spreads and the city plans threaten to erase the block that has held them together, the drivers confront questions of fatherhood, loyalty, and legacy, each staking a claim to what the future should look like and who gets to build it.

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 27

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.