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Made in America MIA for the Third Year in a Row

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Jul 31st, 2025 · 10:06 AM EDT

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Sean Collins Walsh at the Inquirer:

For the third year in a row, Jay-Z’s Made in America music festival will not be returning to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway on Labor Day weekend.

Organizers of the two-day event, which drew tens of thousands of fans almost every year from 2012 to 2022, needed to submit a permit application at least 90 days in advance of the concert to meet the city’s standard deadline for special events.

That deadline has passed, and the city did not receive an application, Joe Grace, a spokesperson for Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, said Tuesday.

The lineup would have been announced by now anyway, two decent headliners and then a bunch of Gen Z trash filling out the card. A slew of mumble rappers and assorted horseshit. Not to be a grump, but it was appalling when a bunch of 18 year olds left early in 2013 because they didn’t know anything about the day 2 headliner, a band called “Nine Inch Nails.” Then Trent Reznor went up there and played a beautiful 90-minute set.

Back in 2023, this thing was cancelled a few weeks before the show because Lizzo was involved in that harassment lawsuit. Then they cancelled in 2024 without any real explanation, before any lineup had even been announced.

On one hand, it would be nice to keep building the festival, which has had some quality sets from headliners like Pearl Jam, Jay Z, Beyonce, NIN, J Cole, and Kendrick Lamar. We have the Roots Picnic and some smaller festivals, but not much beyond that. On the other hand, at least the people living in the Art Museum area and up in Fairmount can enjoy the peace and quiet they’ve been asking for.