North to Shore Festival is coming to Atlantic City with the Losers Lounge, Jazmine Sullivan, and more

The inaugural North to Shore Festival is happening this month in New Jersey up and down the Garden State Parkway, with music and cultural events in Atlantic City, Asbury Park, and Newark.

Atlantic City gets into the swing of things on Thursday, with an opening night dance party at the Anchor Rock Club with Joe McGinty & the Losers Lounge.

The Losers Lounge is a longtime lower Manhattan mainstay, with South Jersey and Philly roots.

Founded in 1993, the band led by keyboard player McGinty performs every other month at its current home base of Joe’s Pub, with a band of New York’s best musicians devoted to championing the music of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, from one-hit wonders to big-name acts.

In the 1980s, McGinty played keyboards with Robert Hazard & the Heroes, the Philly band that flirted with major stardom and were known for “Escalator of Life” and Hazard’s composition “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” which Cyndi Lauper personalized and turned into a feminist anthem.

After Hazard, McGinty spent five years playing with the Psychedelic Furs. Thursday’s show is a homecoming for him: He grew up in Atlantic City.

On Saturday night, the Anchor hosts another North to Shore show with Low Cut Connie, the Philly rock and soul band fronted by Adam Weiner who are becoming regulars at the New York Avenue venue. LCC also have plenty of Jersey connections: Weiner grew up in Cherry Hill, wrote “Look What They Did” on their 2020 album Private Lives as an ode to Atlantic City, and have a deliciously louche song called “Big Thighs, N.J.” in their catalog. More info at AnchorRockclub.com.

Weiner will also team with Philly rapper Chill Moody as part of the Mann Center’s Downstage at the Mann on June 29 and Low Cut Connie’s new album, Art Dealers, is due Sept. 8.

There are also two North to Shore shows this weekend at Boardwalk Hall. On Friday night, singer-songwriter Gavin DeGraw and Colbie Caillat team up.

And on Saturday, powerhouse Philly R&B vocalist and songwriter Jazmine Sullivan — last seen on the stage of the Mann Center at the Roots Picnic on Sunday where she guested with Usher — co-headlines a bill with Jhene Aiko that also includes Queen Naija and Ebony Riley. More info at boardwalkhall.com

There are many other North to Shore events going on through June 11, with comedy showcases, story slam events, art shows, a photo workshop, plus a Sunday Night Jazz Session at Kelsey’s with Tony Day and Across the Globe and a Pridechella drag show at Anchor, both on Sunday in Atlantic City.

More info at NorthToShore.com