The year 2026 has been a concert goer’s dream. No matter the genre there has been something to look forward to this entire year. From superstars taking over the world’s most famous arena to hip hop greats celebrating their illustrious careers to country stars selling out college football stadiums, it just shows how powerful live concerts can be. These not only create memories for the ones in attendance, but moments for the artist and the culture forever. These five tours stood out the most this year.
5. Harry Styles: Together, Together at Madison Square Garden
There have been very few people drawing crowds like the former One Direction member. Harry Styles is now on his 2nd residency at the world’s most famous arena. His “Together Together” residency is one of the most impactful bunch of shows to happen this year. Running from August 26th through Halloween or are his fans call it Harryween, this residency is featuring 30 performances over the near 6 week span of time.
What makes this so exciting is that not only is it the second time he’s done a residency at Madison Square Garden but he is doubling his original run whilst his name on a banner hangs in the rafters like the Knicks championship banner will on Tuesday. Rather than visiting dozens of cities for a few nights each, he has made New York the center of the American leg of the tour. That gives fans from across the country a reason to travel to the city and makes each concert part of a larger shared experience. Though he is not the first artist to have a residency at Madison Square Garden he now is in Legendary Company with artists like Billy Joel, Taylor Swift, and Phish who all have put on legendary runs of performances at the world’s most famous arena. Styles has made his shows a must see event for not only his fans but pop fans as well.
4. J Cole: The Fall-Off World Tour
For J Cole Fans, the year 2026 brought upon something that they had been waiting for almost a decade, the Fall Off. J Cole’s Ultimate project teased for over 8 years. Released on February 6th and tour announced around the same time. This became J Cole’s Most anticipated tour. This album was a reflection on J Cole’s life, this album had been continually worked on for almost 10 years and it shows. It represented his growth as both an artist and a person and the tour reflected that as well. He balanced his new tracks, fan favorites, and deep cuts perfectly to cultivate a J Cole fan’s dream environment. The backdrop of the stage features a building from Cole’s home town of Fayetteville, North Carolina, and he incorporates himself and his hometown into his performance.
The setlist features new album tracks such as “Two Six,” “SAFETY,” “Run a Train” and “Legacy,” alongside established fan favorites like “Middle Child,” “A Tale of 2 Citiez,” “Work Out” and “Lights Please.” Then there was a special section of the concert where Cole would go “Bar for Bar” with fans over his verse on Benny the Butcher’s “Johnny P’s Caddy” he would choose a fan from the crowd, put them on the jumbotron and see if they know this iconic verse word for word and rap it with him. Some people passed with flying colors, others did not but it became any hip hop fan’s dream. Everyone at some point has imagined their favorite artist picking them out of a crowd to sing a song, J Cole made this true for so many fans. This tour was catered to the die hard fans. His storytelling, personal lyrics and willingness to reflect on success, ambition and mistakes have helped him build a particularly loyal fan base. Cole has always had a strong relationship with his fan base so he was able to give back as much as the fans have given him.
3. JAŸ-Z: JAŸZ30 Shows
Shawn Carter better known as JAÿ-Z is one of if not the most recognizable names in hip hop. He made the year 2026 a landmark year for his career and all of hip hop by celebrating the 30th anniversary of his album Reasonable Doubt and the 25th Anniversary of The Blueprint. His JAŸZ30 concert series brought the rapper back home to New York to perform at the legendary Yankee Stadium. Originally slated for two shows they sold out in under a minute with 1.6 million people in the queue to buy tickets for the first two nights. He then added a third show dubbed Extra Innings as a gift to the fans and a nod to the baseball stadium it takes place in. These shows became super meaningful because they celebrated these legendary albums and his legendary career. Jay pulled out all of the stops for these shows bringing out a load of surprise guests. Night 1 featuring Beyonce, Nas, and Alicia Keys. Night 2 featuring Eminem, Slick Rick, and Pharell. And the Extra Innings show featured Beyonce, Rihanna, Pharell, Clipse, Usher, Teyana Taylor, The Dream, Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Jermaine Dupri, Jeezy, and Swizz Beats. The New York shows were a standout for Jay’s career bringing in $43 million over the 3 shows. These were then followed by two shows at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and then there were performances in Paris at Stade De France
2. Morgan Wallen’s “Still The Problem Tour”.
Morgan Wallen Continued his run as country music’s biggest star this year with his “Still The Problem Tour” the second leg touring his fourth studio album “I’m The Problem“ released in may of 2025. He visited 11 different cities and played 21 shows on this tour from April to August.
Morgan puts on a phenomenal show with a well blended mix of his hits and fan favorites. The stage design featured a long outstretched fighter jet shaped stage with a giant screen. This screen played a funny intro video featuring Morgan and Theo von. What is great about a morgan wallen show is no two concerts are ever the same. For every show Morgan does a UFC style walkout with the camera following him from the dressing room to the stage. He is often accompanied by a legend in each city. For Tuscaloosa it was Coach Nick Saban, for Gainesville it was Tim Tebow, this was always a fun guessing game to see who walked out with Morgan for every show. His rotating opening acts were another major attraction for his shows. Depending on the date, fans can see established country names like Thomas Rhett, HARDY, Ella Langley or the legendary duo Brooks & Dunn. The opening lineup would change for an eerie city which made it especially unique.
Morgan being from SEC country played some iconic college football venues this tour. He played in Gainesville Florida at the Swamp, Clemson South Carolina at Death Valley and most notably Tuscaloosa Alabama at Saban Field at Bryant Denny Stadium, which was the University of Alabama’s first concert in their football stadium in 40 years. Wallen made it a very special occasion where he and Ella Langley debuted their song “I Can’t Love You Anymore” which soon became a top 10 hit upon release.
- Bruno Mars: The Romantic Tour
After 10 years Bruno Mars finally returned to a large scale tour with his “Romantic Tour” this was his first stadium tour and first time performing on tour since his 2016 “24K Magic Tour”. Bruno put on over 40 shows in the US and Europe. The setlist is built around his newest album “The Romantic” which the tour is named after. He opens with a latin ballad Risk it All and closes with one of his most beautiful tracks Dance With Me. These songs open and close the show like they do the album which is a great nod to his creativity. Bruno is one of the artists where every single song he has is a hit.
One portion of the show that steals the crowd every time is the portion where Bruno brings out Anderson Paak to do their songs off An Evening with Silk Sonic released in 2021. This retro soul collaboration straight out of 1970 shows a stark contrast but amazing partnership between Paak and Mars. They perform their hits such as Smokin Out the Window and Leave the Door Open. Every single Bruno Mars concert has so much life, positivity and soul. Which not only makes his concerts extremely sought after but it also makes him one of the best performers in music today. The production was off the charts with visuals, lighting, fireworks, and choreography with the band. The Romantic Tour was one of the most anticipated and celebrated tours of this past year.
