(Atlanta, GA) — November 17, 2025 — Today, Live Nation Urban (LNU) and Student Freedom Initiative (SFI) announce the lineup for HBCU AWAREFEST, the largest HBCU fundraiser in history. Initially announced in August, the festival marks a new joint partnership between the two organizations, along with the City of Atlanta and Mayor Andre Dickens, to address one of the most pressing challenges facing Black America: the student loan debt crisis. The inaugural edition of Atlanta’s newest festival will take place at State Farm Arena on March 26, 2026.
The festival includes a stacked slate of performances from the likes of Jill Scott, John Legend, Common, Jeezy, Earth, Wind, & Fire, GloRilla, Metro Boomin, Kirk Franklin, and more,along with remarks from Chris Paul, Robert F. Smith, Angel Reese, Ryan Clark and more. Full performance lineup and guest speaker list is available below. Tickets are available for presale on Wednesday, November 19th at 10AM ET and will go on sale on Friday, November 21st at 10AM ET at awarefest.org.
“At Student Freedom Initiative, we are incredibly excited about the coalition and movement that we are building to end the student loan debt crisis for our nation’s HBCU students,” said Keith Shoates, President and CEO of SFI. “In addition to these amazing performers, we have enlisted AWAREFEST Ambassadors, showing the breadth of our ecosystem of mission-aligned partners. These individuals will help to spread the word and share the urgency of our mission to tackle the racial wealth gap through the lens of education.”
HBCU AWAREFEST is a nationwide call to action with workshops, panel discussions, and live music, which will ignite conversations and spark action to tackle student loan debt for HBCU students. Together, Live Nation Urban and Student Freedom Initiative will raise funds to support SFI’s Student Freedom Loan Agreement, an affordable, income-contingent funding alternative to Parent PLUS Loans.
Live Nation Urban is committed to Black excellence in music and culture, and today we are proud to stand with our partners at Student Freedom Initiative to build a national movement of allies, artists, activists, and students to support the institutions that are the foundation of our culture,” said Shawn Gee, President of Live Nation Urban.
HBCU AWAREFEST MUSIC LINEUP
HBCU AWAREFEST SPEAKER LINEUP
With HBCU AWARE FEST, Live Nation Urban and Student Freedom Initiative will help educate the nation about the contribution of HBCUs to local and national economies, and galvanize collective action to provide sustainable pathways to higher education and long-term wealth creation for students attending HBCUs.
The festival serves as the latest offering in a slew of successful LNU campaigns, including the recently produced The Roots Picnic, BET Experience, ONE Musicfest, “An Evening with Jagged Edge: 25 Years of J.E. Heartbreak,” “RNB X Live: The UK Sound,” Davido’s “The 5IVE ALIVE TOUR,” Black on the Block, “New Wave Tour 2025,” and “Uncle Charlie’s R&B Cookout,” as well as upcoming events including Broccoli City Exchange, “Room 112 Tour,” and Lil’ WeezyAna Fest.
About Live Nation Urban
Live Nation Urban (LNU) is a joint venture co-owned by entrepreneur and music artist manager Shawn Gee and Live Nation, the world’s leading live entertainment company. The company remains North America’s preeminent producer of concert experiences, festivals, and platforms headlined, curated, and owned by black talent, setting the tone for culture with over a dozen sought-after festival brands such as The Roots Picnic, Broccoli City, Exodus Music & Arts Festival, ONE Musicfest, Strength of a Woman, and more.
Beyond their captivating live events, Live Nation Urban has established themselves as key social architects in black culture with their innovative initiatives that include Juneteenth: A Global Celebration (broadcast on CNN), Kerry Washington’s THICKER THAN WATER book tour, and a special Hip-Hop 50 event at the home of Vice President Kamala Harris in addition to tours by artists such as Ari Lennox, Babyface, Kirk Franklin, Lil Wayne, Davido, Charlie Wilson, Jeezy, Jagged Edge, LL Cool J, Jill Scott, Coco Jones, Jodeci, RuPaul, and Raphael Saadiq. The LNU-produced “A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop” special garnered a nomination at the NAACP Image Awards for “Outstanding Variety Show.” Live Nation Urban continues to grow across hip-hop, R&B, soul, and gospel as the most trusted purveyor of live urban music. Learn more about Live Nation Urban at https://livenationurban.com/.
About Student Freedom Initiative
The Student Freedom Initiative is reducing the wealth gap through the lens of education. Our mission is to provide students attending our participating institutions freedom in professional and life choices by increasing their social and economic mobility. Student Freedom Initiative supports students and institutions through a private education loan alternative to Parent PLUS loans, internships and industry-driven certifications, a microgrant program for emergencies, financial literacy tools, and institutional infrastructure upgrades.
Student Freedom Initiative has received generous contributions from Robert F. Smith, Fund 2 Foundation, Cisco, Jane Street, Prudential Financial, First Republic, the Walmart Foundation, and Target. Our programs have been supported by the Business Roundtable’s Racial Equity & Justice Subcommittee on Education, and many others.
For more information, contact:
Live Nation UrbanCarleen Donovancarleen@theoriel.coDrew Ingalldrew@theoriel.co
Student Freedom InitiativeNefertari Carverncarver@laurelstrategies.com