Experts Only is bringing dance music back to Randalls Island. New York has struggled with music festivals since the fiasco that was Ezoo in 2023. Once a staple of New York nightlife was washed away in one weekend.
Step in, John Summit. The house music superstar has taken the industry by storm over the last few years, and his label, Experts Only, is making waves in the scene. John has brought the label all over the world and now finally, he has his first festival. What better place than New York? The festival grounds offer views of the Manhattan skyline. It is a perfect venue for a festival, and I am sure John’s team will take full advantage of the space.
Experts Only Fest will take place on September 20 & 21. In collaboration with Medium Rare, Relentless Beats, and EMW, Experts Only Festival NYC is projected to be New York City’s largest dance music festival, with an expected attendance of 50,000 fans over two days.
The Lineup
The lineup is stacked from new heads to legends across 2 stages. Summit will be headlining both nights. You can expect his very best set with surprise live female artists singing out his biggest creations. John is no stranger to bringing out Hayla, Julia Chruch, Inéz, and more. His curation centers around artists who push dancefloor choreography — from house and melodic techno to raw peak-time hooks.
John Summit is one of the most in-demand names in global dance music. The superstar DJ, producer, and label owner has amassed nearly one billion global streams, scored two #1 U.S. dance radio hits, and landed two Top 10 tracks on the Billboard Hot Electronic/Dance Songs chart. Summit consistently sells out major venues worldwide — from a lightning-fast sellout at New York City’s Madison Square Garden (17,000 tickets in under two hours) to three packed shows at L.A.’s Kia Forum (over 45,000 tickets sold), and a headline date at BMO Stadium (22,000)
On Saturday, Green Velvet B2B Layton Giordani are playing raw tech-house energy and techno marathonism; this one will be one of the darker, sweat-drenched highlights. Chicago will meet New York in their B2B house crossover. Big build-ups, dramatic transitions, possibly mixing in some older classics from Green Velvet to get sing-alongs, then smacking into heavier, driving techno from Layton. Ayybo, Enamour B2B Weska, Pete Tong, Roddy Lima, Teed, and more will have everyone’s feet moving.
Sunday will feature Kaskade B2B Cassian, a pairing that’s both emotionally melodic and creatively risky. Kaskade brings big festival energy and crowd-friendly peaks; Cassian adds more progressive, gritty, and melodic layers. Together, they’ll likely produce a set that balances singable vocal moments with electronic depth. DJ Seinfeld, Kasablanca (Live), LP Giobbi, Tini Gessler, and more will be giving Sunday happies rather than scaries.
In addition to the festival, there is a huge amount of pre- and after-parties at various venues in NYC. Very limited 2-Day and Sunday tickets are available here!