J.I.D to perform at Frost Amphitheater for Blackfest 2026

Blackfest, the largest free Hip-Hop and R&B festival in the Bay Area, will return to Frost Amphitheater on Sunday, May 3 with headliner Atlanta rapper J.I.D, the Black Family Gathering Committee (BFGC) announced Thursday. 

Destin Route, also known by his stage name J.I.D, first gained national recognition with his 2017 debut album “The Never Story.” As a signee under Dreamville, a label owned by Grammy award-winning rapper J.Cole, J.I.D has since released projects including “The Forever Story” and his most recent album “God Does Like Ugly.” His music incorporates aspects of Southern hip-hop and jazz-influenced production. 

Joining him as the opener for Blackfest 2026 will be Samara Cyn, whose work blends R&B and contemporary pop influences. In addition to the featured artists, Blackfest 2026 will include community performances and a showcase of Stanford’s Divine Nine, the historically African-American sororities and fraternities, continuing the event’s mission of emphasizing student and cultural representation.

For this year’s organizers, building the lineup was one of the most significant parts of planning. 

“Choosing the headliner and opener is one of the most exciting parts of planning Blackfest because we get to think creatively about how different artists will come together on one stage,” said Simone Jacot-Bell ’27, co-director of the Black Family Gathering Committee. “Building the lineup is really about curating a meaningful experience for our community.”

This year, both artists “bring a strong sense of artistry and originality to their music,” Jacot-Bell said.

The committee also sought a lineup that balanced hip-hop tradition with audience engagement. “We wanted a balance between performers who showcased the spirit of hip-hop and who we knew would put on an engaging show for the audience,” co-director Mayowa Adesina ’27 said. “We thought J.I.D. was a strong fit for that.”

The organizers also sought female artists within the genre. “Samara has been on our radar for a while, and highlighting female voices in hip-hop is important to us,” Adesina said.

Stanford’s Blackfest traces its origins to the Black Family Picnic, first established in the early 1970s as a gathering for Stanford’s Black community to connect and celebrate. 

“It provided an opportunity for Black students and staff to gather in a nonacademic, fun setting,” Grace Carroll ’71 MA ’75 PhD ’75 told Stanford Magazine. “Folks ate, played ball, and just hung out.”

Since then, the event expanded to become an arts and music festival in the early 2000s. In recent years, Blackfest has featured Vince Staples (2025), Larry June (2024), Pi’erre Bourne (2023) and YG (2022), among others. 

This year’s festival is open to both the Stanford community and the broader Bay Area. Admission is free, but organizers encourage attendees to reserve tickets early considering Frost Amphitheater’s limited capacity.

Ticket reservations will begin Friday March 6th at 10 a.m. Additional programming details will be announced in the coming weeks on the @stanfordblackfest Instagram page.

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