The full programme for KOSMOS CHEMNITZ on 29 August 26 has been finalised
KOSMOS Chemnitz is growing. On 29 August 2026, the free city festival will take place in Chemnitz city centre for the fifth time. Over 250 events covering music, society, art, sport and business will be held across new venues. The festival will take place on 29 August in the area between Hartmannplatz, Schmidtbankpassage and Kaßbergauffahrt. The streets ‘An der Markthalle’ and Fabrikstraße, along with their adjacent shops and vacant premises, will be included, as will schools, the Hartmannfabrik, the Hartmannhalle and the green spaces behind them.
250 events on the festival Saturday
Musically, KOSMOS will once again cover a wide range of genres in 2026: across several stages in the city centre, indie pop, German rap, electropop, punk and techno will come together – from established names and newcomers to local acts and DJs. The musical headliners include OK KID, Alexander Marcus, Mika Noé, ok.danke.tschüss and Dani Lia. They’ll be joined by acts such as SALÒ, Mariybu, beslik, Hinterlandgang and DJ Hundefriedhof, as well as numerous other bands, solo artists and DJ sets from Chemnitz, Germany and across Europe. And in 2026, all KOSMOS guests can once again look forward to an exciting SECRET ACT. Spread throughout the day, the programme ranges from quiet moments to lively club sounds and appeals to all generations
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Numerous other headliners will be appearing at KOSMOS in panels, workshops and keynote speeches. These include Luisa Neubauer, Arne Semsrott, Joseph “Nana Kwame” Awuah-Darko and Luna Möbius, as well as Moritz Simon Geist, pilzaddicted, Jazzy Gabert, Ramona Wuttig and many more.
Opening show at the Stadthalle on Friday
In addition, for the first time, there will be a festival opening event the evening before: the KOSMOS REVUE, a new format complementing the festival programme. On Friday 28 August 2026, from 8 pm, the Main Hall of the Stadthalle will host a carefully curated evening of music, entertainment, conversation and surprising moments of pop culture. In true KOSMOS spirit, the aim is to experiment with new formats that break with convention. Various artists will be performing live.
About KOSMOS Chemnitz
KOSMOS Chemnitz is a festival for democracy. Having emerged in 2018 from the highly acclaimed #wirsindmehr concert, it has established itself as one of the most significant democracy festivals in the German-speaking world. It combines pop culture, art, discourse and participation – and turns the city itself into a stage. In 2025, the festival attracted 115,000 visitors.
In 2026, the City of Chemnitz will organise the KOSMOS Festival for the first time. This year’s programme will again be realised under the leadership of Kulturhauptstadt Europas Chemnitz 2025 gGmbH. Furthermore, the established networks – in particular stakeholders from local and supra-regional cultural organisations, institutions and associations – continue to support and facilitate the implementation of KOSMOS.