From Shakira to Buddy Guy, these are the best pop concerts at the Shore this summer

Summer music at the Shore means big name acts in Atlantic City casino showrooms; beach blowouts in Asbury Park, Wildwood, and A.C.; and Zach Bryan at the Woodlands in Delaware. Plus, the biggest beachside splash of the season: Shakira at Boardwalk Hall.

This list of recommended shows also includes cozier, air-conditioned spaces like the Ocean City Music Pier, Anchor Rock Club in Atlantic City, the Lizzie Rose Music Room in Tuckerton, and Bottle & Cork in Dewey Beach.

Also in Atlantic City: Meek Mill is bringing “Lit in AC” to Boardwalk Hall on June 20, the Best Road Trip Weekend reggae festival with Lauryn Hill is July 10-12 at Goldfish Beach Club, and Dave P.’s Making Waves dance music festival is coming back to the New York Ave. beach in July.

And check out Down the Shore outdoor music programming like the Mardi Gras AC Series at Kennedy Plaza in Atlantic City and Chicken Bone Beach Jazz Concert Series, also at Kennedy Plaza. Then, there are the Friday night Somers Point Concerts, which include John Cafferty and Beaver Brown on July 17 and George Porter Jr. on July 24.

“Star-Spangled Banner” Super Bowl singer Charlie Puth, who grew up in Monmouth County, will head down the Garden State Parkway. The “Marvin Gaye” singer and producer is touring behind his new album Whatever’s Clever. casino.hardrock.com/atlantic-city/

Smooth R&B veterans Benét and Hathaway — daughter of the late great soul singer Donny Hathaway — are joined by next generation old soul October London. BoardwalkHall.com

Are they not men? They are Devo! Another band still touring after its farewell tour, the band is fronted by SpongeBob SquarePants music maker Mark Mothersbaugh. It is a punk rock art project that turned into an unlikely pop band whose members are still looking sharp in their hazmat suits and flower pots on their heads. mgmresorts.borgata.com

The Hootie & the Blowfish frontman and country singer, Darius Rucker, is now also a member of Howl Owl Howl with Mike Mills of R.E.M. and former Black Crowes drummer Steve Gorman. He is on a “Songs of Summer” solo tour, so expect lots of hits from a 30-year career. casino.hardrock.com/atlantic-city/

Ben Schneider’s moody, atmospheric and mildly psychedelic band Lord Huron has found a wide audience through old-fashioned touring and new fashioned TikTok. The band’s 2015 song “The Night We Met” has been streamed more than 3 billion times on TikTok. Last year’s The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1 included “Who Last Laughs,” with narration by Kristen Stewart. theoceanac.com.

Sweet Baby James is skipping Philly on his 2026 summer tour — there is a June 25 date in Hershey — so this stop at the Hard Rock is the closest opportunity for Philly fans to witness the archetypal 1970s singer-songwriter and his always A-list All-Star Band. casino.hardrock.com/atlantic-city/

The University of Pennsylvania-born electronic jam band Disco Biscuits is playing two shows at Heuser Park in King of Prussia on July 25 and 26. But before that, fans of the group’s “trance fusion” sound can catch them celebrating the Semiquincentennial. The after party is at Anchor Rock Club. borgatamgmresorts.com.

Song parodist extraordinaire and accordion player Weird Al Yankovic’s “Bigger and Weirder” tour comes to the Shore. Sad clown musical comedian Puddles Pity Party opens. borgatamgmreserts.com.

The great Los Angeles band Los Lobos — subject of the new Native Sons documentary and once again unjustly not nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame — is teaming with San Angelo, Texas’ Garza brothers of Los Lonely Boys for the “Brotherhood Tour.” caesars.com/atlantic-city/shows

The Colombian superstar’s tour for her 2024 album, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran — that translates as “Women No Longer Cry” — brings her irresistibly energetic stage show to the Boardwalk. The 2023 MTV Video Vanguard winner who released her debut album Magia in 1991 when she was 13, is the biggest name on the beach this summer. BoardwalkHall.com

Louisiana-born blues guitarist George “Buddy” Guy was a young gun in the Chicago blues scene in the 1960s, playing with Muddy Waters, hooking up with his harmonica-blowing partner Junior Wells, and influencing guitarists like Jimi Hendrix. Decades on, Guy is still going. He had a banner 2025, with his album Ain’t Done With the Blues and a key role in Ryan Coogler’s Sinners. theoceanac.com.

Remember how that 2025 Wu-Tang Forever date in South Philly was going to be the Staten Island crew’s final show ever? Well, lo and behold the historic hip-hop group was back on the road this spring, making headlines in Australia when Method Man and others didn’t make it to a gig. Let’s hope perfect attendance is mandatory at this casino show, because that Philly farewell show really was a night to remember. casino.hardrock.com/atlantic-city/

The Australian pop house band is playing all the iconic venues: Wrigley Field, Bonnaroo … and the Atlantic City beach. The show is the first to be staged on the sand facing north with the former Million Dollar Pier behind the performers’ back, since 2023. RufusDuSoul.com/live

Credence Clearwater Revival founder Fogerty is on an ongoing Legacy Tour. As the creator of such timeless tunes as “Proud Mary,” “Who’ll Stop the Rain?” and the evergreen protest song “Fortunate Son,” he has one of the more formidable legacies in pop music. Steve Winwood is “Back in the High Life” again as the fellow baby boomer opening act. casino.hardrock.com/atlantic-city/

The New York Avenue club on-the-site of the old Chez Paree — the center of AC gay nightlife in the 1970s — has a busy calendar: Atlantic City Riff Fest, with Atomic Bitch Wax, Solace, and Shovelhead on June 6, hard-charging Atlantic City punk band Gutter Drunk on July 11, Anthony Green of Circa Survive on July 23, Keller Williams’ Dead tribute Grateful Grass on July 30, the second annual Pine Barrens Folk Fest on Aug 22. anchorrockclub.com

Tuckerton’s intimate folk and blues space brings John Gorka on June 3, Dan Fuchs on June 27, Kenny Neal on Aug. 14, Mary Fahl of the October Project on Aug. 15-16, Will Hoge on Sept. 17, and Deb Callahan on Sept. 19. LizzieRoseMusic.com

The idyllic site across Route 1 from Dover International Speedway has been underused since the Firefly Music Festival went on a seemingly permanent hiatus in 2022. But the outdoor venue on the way to the Delaware beaches will draw a mighty crowd with former Philadelphia resident Zach Bryan bringing his “With Heaven On Top” tour to the Woodlands for two nights. Kings of Leon opens the first night and Alabama Shakes the next. Fey Fili and Gabriella Rose are also on the bill. WoodlandsDover.com.

Dewey Beach’s music bar is busy though the summer, with emo band Taking Back Sunday on May 21, Baltimore jam band Pigeons Playing Ping Pong on June 7, Americana duo The War and Treaty on June 18, the Bacon Brothers on July 17, and Jakob Dylan’s The Wallflowers on Aug. 11. BottleandCork.com

This year’s schedule at the built-in-1929 pier on the Ocean City boardwalk begins with a Bach Bash. That’s the theme for Straight No Chaser, the male a cappella nonet that kicks off the season on June 29. Also on tap are touring partners Richard Thompson and Judy Collins on July 20. On July 27, Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers play in support of Hornsby’s new album Indigo Park, which features Bonnie Raitt, Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend, and the late Bob Weir. The ‘60s nostalgia Happy Together Tour is Aug. 3 and the Indigo Girls, fresh off Emily Saliers’ musical theater foray Starstruck, are on Aug. 17. ocnj.us/music-pier

This year’s Barefoot Country Fest lineup is much improved, with big name mainstream country stars not given to the pickup truck pandering that too often plagues the genre. Instead, the four-night fest has quality acts on top of the bill including proven hit maker Miranda Lambert, wildcat showman Eric Church, legit star Kelsea Ballerini, and rapper turned better-than-you-had-any-right-to-expect country singer Post Malone. Shaboozey is also on tap along with a host of other acts. barefootcountryfest.com.

The Hooters will not be doing its annual gig at the Cape May Convention this year — the Philly band is taking a break from summer touring. But plenty is happening at Convention Hall: country songwriter and guitarist Mac McAnally on June 28, Philly soul vets the Stylistics on July 12, Joan Osborne revisiting her 1994 breakthrough album Relish on July 26, the Spinners on Aug. 2, and A.J. Croce singing his and his father Jim’s music on Aug. 7. In addition there’s a concert series at Nauti Spirits Distillery, with Dumpstaphunk on June 27 and Donavon Frankenreiter on Aug. 15. capemayconventionhall.com, nautispirits.com.

The Stone Pony and its outdoor summer stage is the busiest live music spot at the Shore. Former Van Halen main man David Lee Roth plays June 5, the Turnpike Troubadours are June 6, and Les Claypool’s Primus is June 13. Philly rock hero Kurt Vile & the Violators are on June 21, British indie band Black Country, New Road is joined by Horsegirl on July 5. Lucy Dacus plays July 25, the Record Company Aug. 16, Andy Frasco and the Kitchen Dwellers on Aug. 20, and Social Distortion on Sept. 5. stoneponyonline.com

Asbury Park’s annual beach blowout will be headlined by English folk rockers Mumford & Sons on Saturday and re-formed New York rockers the Strokes on Sunday. Undercard highlights include Philly’s own The War On Drugs along with Chaka Khan, the Offspring, Shaggy, Susanna Hoffs, and Men at Work on Saturday; and Fontaines D.C., Kim Gordon, Pixies, Ziggy Marley, Die Spitz, and Moby on Sunday. SeaHearNowFestival.com