New Jersey Makes Comedy And Hip-Hop History With North To Shore Lineup

New Jersey will be the hottest destination this summer, as North to Shore has continued to expand its attractions with a variety of musical and comedic acts for its 2025 edition, taking place from June 14 to 29.

North to Shore is the Garden State’s largest festival, featuring film screenings and an extensive list of local and world-famous performers for musical and comedic acts. 

For its musical entertainment, North to Shore will feature the 31st annual Hot 97 Summer Jam. For one night in Newark’s Prudential Center on June 20, this hip-hop festival will feature a massive lineup, including A Boogie, Gunna, GloRilla, Muni Long, Asake, Ayra Starr and Ja Rule and Friends. 

The Summer Jam will also feature multiple artists from New Jersey, including Asbury Park’s Alexander Simone (the grandson of Nina Simone), Atlantic City’s Mary Cross, and Newark natives MC Rah Digga and DJ Wallah.

In the lead up to 2025’s Summer Jam, Wallah expressed his excitement to perform with and in front of his favorite artists, as well as to share his “homegrown music” with his fellow New Jerseyans at what he described as the “Super Bowl of hip hop.”

“I think the one thing that stands out more than anything is I’m getting to play in front of the people I grew up with,” said Wallah. “I get to play in front of the crowd [that] I went to school with, that I live around, that might know me personally…My family might be at the show because it’s here.”

North to Shore will also feature the Rock the Bells Festival on June 28, presented at the Prudential Center by founder LL Cool J and hosted by Roxanne Shante. This annual hip-hop music festival will celebrate the legacy of Uptown Records, one of the leading labels of early hip-hop. 

North to Share has set itself up to be a massive celebration of hip-hop culture and history, roughly 50 years since the genre’s inception with this year’s theme, “Class of 2025: Summer’s Kool.” The festival will celebrate the legendary and innovative performers who helped turn the genre into a global phenomenon, featuring artists like Busta Rhymes, Redman, Eric B. & Rakim, Remy Ma, Too $hort, Scarface, Plies, Boosie, Fabolous, Lil’ Mo and more.

“Class of 2025: Summer’s Kool is more than a festival — it’s a cultural homecoming,” said LL Cool J. “We’re celebrating the artists who built the foundation and the new voices pushing it forward, all in one night. This is Hip-Hop in its full glory — past, present, and future.”

With the Black Promoters Collective producing both Hot 97 and Rock the Bells, North to Shore will present a large venue set up by Black producers honoring Black artists and giving new ones the freedom to share their music.

“It always feels good when the people that create it, the [hip-hop] culture, the people that curate the culture, are now the people that are putting together the shows,”DJ Wallah told New Jersey Urban News. “It feels good because now it feels like we can kind of control our own narrative without other people being too involved among you.” 

The festival will also have an extensive comedy line-up with its new Rising Stars of Comedy event. Taking place at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), this event will feature up-and-coming Black comics from across the country, including Rio Paris, Mason King, Apple Brown Betty, Anthony Oakes, and Rashaun Reese from East Orange.

The Rising Stars of Comedy will be presented by Bob Sumner, the co-creator of HBO’s “Def Comedy Jam,” which hosted early performances of renowned Black comedians like Cedric the Entertainer, J.B. Smoove, Dave Chappelle, Sheryl Underwood, Chris Tucker, Mo’Nique, Eddie Griffin, Craig Robinson, Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish and Tracy Morgan.

Sumner, who began his stand-up career performing in New Jersey, hopes to bring audiences back to the “Golden Age” of comedy he helped usher in with “Def Comedy Jam.” Though he went through a period of loss and depression during the pandemic, Sumner found himself rising out of his despair as he assembled his new wave of Black comedians for North to Shore.

Having selected his lineup out of 700 comedians from 30 cities, Sumner promised that these Rising Stars would each bring their own “fresh,” thought-provoking brand of humor to this year’s festival.

“Most importantly, I’m looking for, like, hilarious. Bend over. ‘I can’t take it anymore’ type comedy,” Sumner said in an interview. “And when I tell you that these comedians that are going to be performing, everyone has their own style, everyone has their own message, and everyone’s looking ready for stardom.”

After attracting large crowds to New Jersey for its first two festivals, North to Shore aims to be an exciting hub for fans of music and comedy. Festival organizers hope the next generation can carve out their space in the world of entertainment through this summer event.

“Prudential North to Shore isn’t just about bringing global headliners to New Jersey—it’s also about giving local artists a platform to shine,” said John Schreiber, president and CEO of NJPAC. “Today and every day, we celebrate New Jersey’s homegrown talent and the vibrant artistic community that helps define life in the Garden State. Their creativity and passion are an essential part of who we are as New Jerseyans.”

Tickets for the 2025 Prudential North to Short Festival are on sale now. More information on the festival’s lineup can be found here.