Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, and More to Re-Open Central Park

Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen and Jennifer Hudson are the first batch of artists to headline the New York City “Homecoming Concert” at Central Park in New York, tentatively scheduled for Aug. 21. Part of a week-long celebration of the city’s reopening, the concert will be held on the Great Lawn and is being booked in collaboration with producer Clive Davis.

Davis, who worked with Simon & Garfunkel after taking over Columbia Records in the 1960s, and also signed Springsteen in 1972 and Hudson to J Records in 2006, previously said that eight “iconic” artists will round out the concert, which is expected to bring in 60,000 attendees.

“This is going to be one of the greatest Central Park concerts in history,” said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio during a news conference. “This is something for the ages.”

Springsteen, who just returned to his Springsteen on Broadway show, which runs through Sept. 4 at the St. James Theatre on Saturdays, will be in the Park on Sat., Aug. 21 and is reportedly set to perform a duet with Patti Smith.

“[Springsteen] is beloved in New York City in an extraordinary way,” said de Blasio, “even though he happens to come from Jersey—no one’s perfect.”

New York City native Simon has a long history with Central Park, from his iconic performance nearly 40 years earlier with Art Garfunkel (as Simon & Garfunkel) on Sept. 19, 1981 to his solo performances in the park throughout the years, including his Concert in the Park in 1991. The performance marks the first time Simon will perform since his 2018 farewell show at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens.