The Traveller’s Guide to Planet Brooklyn

By Brooklyn Magazine

Planet Brooklyn is almost in orbit. 

The two-day music festival will celebrate the culture of the borough across Fort Greene and Downtown Brooklyn this weekend. On August 23 and 24, musicians, DJs, artists, restaurants, and vendors will converge at Barclays Center, BAM, and Brooklyn Paramount for a series of shows and block parties. And whether you’re into hip-hop, Afrobeat, reggae, or soca, or even if you just want to vibe out during the last days of summer, there’s going to be whole universes to explore up, down, and all around Flatbush Avenue this weekend. 

To help you out, BKMAG is breaking down everything you need to know for the weekend, from set times to site maps and line-ups and beyond. This is the Traveller’s Guide to Planet Brooklyn. 

When and Where 

As noted, Planet Brooklyn is happening Saturday, August 23, and Sunday, August 24, from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. 

Ticketed shows will take place at Barclays Center (620 Atlantic Ave.), BAM (30 Lafayette Ave.), and the Brooklyn Paramount (385 Flatbush Ave. Ext.) You can buy tickets and RSVP for the free BAM shows here.

The block parties, on the other hand, won’t be quite as centralized. The action is all along Lafayette Avenue and Fulton Street between Flatbush Avenue and Ft. Greene Place on both days. See the site maps for each day above. 

Courtesy of Planet Brooklyn

The Shows 

Planet Brooklyn is packed with live performances across both days of the festival.  

On Saturday, the MUTHA collective will take over the Brooklyn Paramount for a festival within a festival featuring sets from Ludmilla, CupCakKe, Junglepussy, Mykki Blanco, and more, while Grammy-nominated Cuban vocalist Daymé Arocena holds court at BAM. 

And on Sunday, you can find soca legend Machel Montano pulling up to Barclays Center with an all-star crew, including Ayetian, Bunji Garlin, Lady Lava, and Skillibeng for a day of myriad riddims and endless vibes, as West African singer Natu Camara lights up the BAM stage down the street. 

Courtesy of Planet Brooklyn

The Block Parties 

In acknowledgment of a borough-wide institution, the Planet Brooklyn block party map is clustered with collectives containing dozens of artists, DJs, and producers from galaxies near and unknown.

Saturday’s loaded with parties hosted by Everyday People, Angela Yee, Menasa Sound System, 9 a.m. Banger, Dos Flakos, and Potluck Club during the day, and at baba cool, you can catch some of the after-hours action at night.

Quench, Saint James Joy, and the Afro-Latino Festival join returning parties Menasa Sound and the 9 a.m. crew at Planet Brooklyn on Sunday, which is getting a proper send-off from Sango.

All of this, by the way, is free ninety-nine and open to all ages (though parents should certainly exercise discretion here.)

See the full line-ups and schedules for each block party up top.

Photo via Getty Images

The Village

While you’re making the rounds, be sure to stop through The Village for bites, fits, and goods of all sorts and strains. The festival’s local vendors’ market will feature appearances from The Travel Agency, Kefi Coffee, DOSA by Lore, African Chop House, and Coco Bred, to name just a few of the dozens of tents slinging stellar food, clothing, jewelry, and assorted goodies throughout the weekend.

You can explore the full line-up of over 120 vendors here.

Photo via Getty Images

Transportation

By now, the only reasonable question remaining is “how the hell do I get there?” And frankly, as any local would cop to, there’s an embarrassment of paths, portals, and gateways to and from Planet Brooklyn.

The easiest, most obvious, and sure way to guarantee smooth entry and exit is to go by foot. Walk down Lafayette or Fulton for long enough and you’re bound to spot the atmosphere. But for those commuting non-pedestrian distances, from the outer edges of the borough or lightyears beyond that, the public transit options are copious.

From the north and/or south, you can catch 2, 3, 4, and 5 trains to Nevins Street, or take the B or Q trains to Atlantic Center. If you’re coming from the east or west, your best bets are the A and C trains at Hoyt/Schermerhorn and Lafayette Avenue, or the G train at Fulton Street, which lets you emerge at the beating heart of the festival’s block parties.

The whole area is also pretty accessible by bus via the B25 and the B52 on Fulton Street and Gates Avenue, or the B41 on Flatbush Avenue.