‘A Drugcember to Remember’ is coming back to its ‘old local hangout’
The War On Drugs' annual tradition benefiting the Fund for the School District of Philadelphia started in 2018 but was on pause since 2022.
Once again, Philadelphia music fans can look forward to a Drugcember to remember.
Next month, Philly rock band The War On Drugs will renew a tradition that has been on hiatus since 2022. It will perform a trio of fundraising shows to benefit the Fund for the School District of Philadelphia, the nonprofit that raises money and coordinates investments into Philadelphia Schools.
The Adam Granduciel-led seven piece band, that won a best rock album Grammy for A Deeper Understanding in 2018, will play three nights at Johnny Brenda’s in Fishtown, from Dec. 18-20.
The 250 capacity club — which the band first played on the venue’s opening weekend in 2006 — is several magnitudes smaller that the amphitheater, arena, and festival stages the Drugs typically plays in venues around the world.
Drugcember to Remember debuted in 2018 and became an annual Philly three-show tradition through 2022, with the exception of the COVID shutdown year of 2020.
But it hadn’t taken place since 2022, and seemed in danger of being gone for good, with Granduciel now living on Los Angeles and bassist and original members Dave Hartley in North Carolina.
Granduciel said in a statement that the return to the treasured tradition is a way to reaffirm its Philadelphia identity.
“This has been a year end highlight for me since we started doing it in 2018,” said the guitarist and songwriter who stepped out as a producer in 2025 on Craig Finn’s Always Been and Sam Fender’s People Watching. “Three rock shows at our old local hangout benefiting the Philadelphia School System. This band wouldn’t exist if not for the vibrant Philadelphia music community that has supported us from the beginning and we are very grateful for it.”
The War On Drugs’ most recent studio album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, came out in 2021. Last year, they released the in-concert recording Live Drugs Again.
» READ MORE: Philly's the War on Drugs reach for greatness and 'A Deeper Understanding'
Its most recent Philadelphia performance was in the summer of 2024, sharing a bill with the National at the Mann Center in Fairmount Park. Besides the Drugcember shows, the only two dates on the band’s schedule are at festivals in Spain and Portugal in July 2026.
A Drugcember To Remember will raise funds through ticket sales and also the sale of exclusive items though Philadelphia businesses, including Elixr Coffee, Sacred Vice Brewing, Room Shop, Uncle Ron’s Candles, and Kinetic Skateboarding/Nocturnal Skate Shop.
Ticket for the Johnny Brenda’s shows go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday Nov. 21 at thewarondrugs.net/tour.