Music may be what first draws people to the Global Citizen Festival, but the Festival starts long before the first artist takes the stage. It begins when people learn about an issue and decide to take action.
On Sept. 26, thousands of Global Citizens will gather on Central Park’s Great Lawn for a day of live music and advocacy, bringing artists, audiences, advocates, and leaders together around the same campaign goals.
So, What Exactly Is Global Citizen Festival?
Global Citizen Festival is an advocacy event built around a simple model: learn, act, and earn. Global Citizens learn about issues connected to extreme poverty, take action through the Global Citizen app, and earn points they can use toward rewards, including chances to attend the Festival.
The Festival takes place each year in New York City during the United Nations General Assembly, when world leaders are already gathered in the city. That timing creates an opportunity to bring public participation and campaign priorities into conversations with institutions that may be able to support them through policy, funding, or partnerships.
Each group has a different role. Artists can introduce campaign issues to wider audiences. Global Citizens learn and participate through the app. Government, business, and philanthropic leaders are encouraged to support the goals through policy, funding, and partnerships.
What Makes It Different From a Regular Music Festival?
Most Festival tickets are earned by taking action through the Global Citizen app, rather than simply purchased.
In the app, Global Citizens complete action journeys and sprints designed to explain an issue before inviting them to participate. Actions may include signing petitions, contacting representatives, sharing messages, or volunteering. Completing those journeys and sprints earns points. Global Citizens can use their points to enter draws for pairs of free Festival tickets, with available draws and entry periods listed in the app.
Fans who prefer to secure their place directly can also purchase General Admission and VIP tickets through Ticketmaster. However, taking action remains central to how most Global Citizens earn their way to the Great Lawn.
Who’s Performing at Global Citizen Festival 2026?
This year’s lineup brings together fans of hip-hop, rock, country, and K-pop on the Great Lawn.
Ms. Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Fugees’ The Score. Lenny Kravitz, John Legend, Lainey Wilson, Shaboozey, and TOMORROW X TOGETHER will also perform. They’ll be joined by Alicia Keys & friends, Victoria Monét, YEONJUN, and YOSHIKI.
Longtime Global Citizen Ambassador Hugh Jackman will host, with appearances from Rachel Brosnahan and Gayle King. Bill Nye, IZA, Jordan Fisher, Katie Couric, Lais Ribeiro, Marcus Samuelsson, Naomi Watanabe, Nomzamo Mbatha, PJ Sin Suela, and Vladimir Duthiers will also appear.
Someone may first hear about the Festival because of an artist they follow, then encounter an education, food security, or energy campaign they had not previously explored.
“What unites them is the belief that music has the power to move people to action,” said Katie Hill, Global Citizen’s chief music and entertainment officer.
What Are All Those Actions Working Toward?
For 2026, the Festival campaign is focused on three goals: helping more children get to school, supporting smallholder farmers who feed their communities, and increasing access to reliable electricity.
The campaign aims to create opportunities for 2 million children to go to school, support 1.5 million smallholder farmers, and help turn on the lights in 2.5 million homes.
Behind those figures are real people: children able to learn, farmers equipped to support their communities, and families with access to electricity at home.
The goals are different, but they all come back to the same idea: giving people more of the basics they need to learn, earn a living, stay healthy, and plan for the future.
What Actually Happens at Global Citizen Festival?
The day moves between live performances, advocacy moments, stories about the issues at stake, and announcements from the stage.
Artists and advocates speak about the issues behind the campaign, while government, business, and philanthropic leaders may announce commitments responding to Global Citizen’s advocacy. After the Festival ends, Global Citizen’s impact team tracks announced commitments and reports on their progress and delivery.
Since the movement began, more than $50 billion in commitments announced through Global Citizen’s platforms and events has been deployed, impacting 1.3 billion lives worldwide, according to Global Citizen’s latest impact figures.
How Can You Take Part Before Festival Day?
Start by downloading the Global Citizen app and signing up. Explore an action journey or sprint, complete the available steps, and earn points. You can then use those points to enter for a chance to win a pair of free Festival tickets. Check the Festival page for the latest draw windows and ticket availability.
And for New Yorkers, there’s another way to get involved. Throughout September, you can earn free Festival tickets by volunteering. Upcoming activities include urban planting on Sept. 16, a coastal cleanup on Sept. 19, and supporting guests at Bowery Mission on Sept. 20. Food donations can also be made at participating locations through Sept. 26. Eligible participants may earn Festival tickets, but spaces are limited and some projects may already be full. Check the latest volunteering opportunities and availability here.
You may first hear about the Festival because of an artist you follow. But the music is only where the story starts.
By the time Sept. 26 arrives, Global Citizens will already have explored the campaigns and taken action on education, food security, and electricity access. And that’s what makes this Festival different: the audience helps build the moment before anyone steps onto the stage.