XJAZZ! WEEKENDER

XJAZZ! 2026 returns to Berlin with a new format from May 28 to 31.

For the fourth year in a row, we are teaming up with XJAZZ! to bring a special set with Marylou, Maryisonacid, and NM DJ at the festival opening in the garden of Festsaal Kreuzberg. The evening also features performances by Sera Kalo and Sorvina.

On March 9th, XJAZZ! announced it was cancelling its beloved, week-long festival due to the Berlin parliament's cultural administration refusing to release their funding: "No written explanation. No alternative. No response to our letters." With a surge of support from underground music communities, XJAZZ! have responded with a shorter version that's largely focused on local artists.

The full lineup includes Kit Downes & Delphine Joussein, Charlotte Colace, Moses Yoofee Trio, an afterparty by SHUSH, and the closing XJAZZ! × LOVEDANCINʼ gathering with Gilles Peterson, Tereza, and Tom Kutsche. Tickets and more information are available on the XJAZZ! website, and find out more about how to support the weekender in the below Q&A with Anastasiia Pokaz from the XJAZZ! team.

What is the new plan for the XJAZZ! Weekender? How is it different from the original plan? Honestly, the Weekender was never a plan, it was a response. We had a full festival mapped out, ambitious as always, with multiple days, venues, and a much bigger scale. When the funding situation collapsed, we had to make a very quick decision: either cancel everything quietly or find a way to still exist this year. The Weekender is that decision. It’s more condensed, more intentional, and in a way more honest. Instead of spreading ourselves across many formats, we focused on a tight, high-quality program that still reflects. what XJAZZ! is about discovery, community, and artists we truly believe in. How is it looking with the company and your funding at the moment? It’s tough. The cancellation of funding hit us very directly, not just as a festival, but as a company that operates year-round. We’re in a moment where every decision really matters, financially and structurally. At the same time, we’re still here. We didn’t disappear, we didn’t go silent — and that already says a lot about how much we care about this project. How has the community support been since the announcement of the cancellation? That’s honestly been the most overwhelming part. The amount of messages, reposts, people reaching out, offering help, artists standing with us… It reminded us very clearly that XJAZZ! is not just an event. It’s something people feel connected to. Of course, support doesn’t solve structural funding problems overnight, but it changes the energy completely. It gives us momentum and also responsibility to keep going. Aside from buying a ticket and coming to the Weekender, how can people support XJAZZ!? Coming is already huge. That’s the most direct way to support us right now. But beyond that, it’s also about visibility. Talk about it, share it, bring someone who hasn’t experienced XJAZZ! before. The more people understand what this project is, the stronger it becomes. And longer-term, it’s about staying connected, coming to future events, supporting the artists we work with, and being part of the ecosystem around it. XJAZZ! has always been built collectively. This moment just makes that more visible.

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Photos by Akim Karpach and Eike Walkenhorst.