Red Hot Summer Tour 2026: Lineup, Venues & Tickets

Paul Kelly has become a fixture at Australian outdoor concerts over the past decade, and in 2026 he headlines the Red Hot Summer Tour — a six-act bill touring regional and suburban venues across five states from April through May, with tickets starting around $140.

Headliner: Paul Kelly · Tour Year: 2026 · Venues: Outdoor across Australia · Ticket Platform: Ticketmaster · Official Site: redhotsummertour.com.au

The table below summarizes the key event parameters for the 2026 Red Hot Summer Tour.

Who is playing the Red Hot Summer Tour in 2026?

The 2026 edition leads with Paul Kelly, one of Australian music’s most recognisable voices. The tour assembles six acts that have built devoted followings across rock, folk, and indie-pop — a lineup that stays consistent across venues rather than varying by region.

Paul Kelly

The Adelaide-born singer-songwriter anchors the entire tour. With a catalog spanning four decades, Kelly’s headline slots attract audiences ranging from longtime fans who have followed him since the 1980s to younger listeners discovering his work through streaming. His 2025 album ‘Seventy’ marks a milestone year before the tour kicks off.

Other announced acts

Missy Higgins, The Cruel Sea, The Cat Empire, Kasey Chambers, and Jess Hitchcock round out the bill. Kasey Chambers confirmed her involvement on her official site, calling it “an incredible line-up of much-loved favourites.” The Cat Empire brings a brass-heavy live energy that translates well to outdoor stages, while The Cruel Sea offers blues-rock from the same era as Kelly’s commercial peak.

Is Paul Kelly touring in 2026?

Yes, confirmed. Kelly’s official tour page lists dates in Mornington (April 11), Pialba (April 18), Dubbo (May 2), Hillarys (May 9), and Sandstone (May 23) — covering Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, and Western Australia in a single run.

Paul Kelly on Red Hot Summer Tour

The Red Hot Summer Tour has featured Kelly before, but this 2026 edition arrives after his milestone ‘Seventy’ album drop on 9 November 2025 — a timing that lets him road-test new material alongside established hits. The tour’s promoter describes it as “bringing legendary rock acts and vibrant live music” to outdoor venues.

Tour dates with Paul Kelly

Verified dates span six confirmed stops with a cluster of regional venues: Mornington Racecourse (VIC), Seafront Oval Hervey Bay (QLD), Dubbo Showground (NSW), Whitfords Nodes Park Hillarys (WA), and Sandstone Gardens (WA). Tixel’s resale listings also show tickets for Batemans Bay, Warrnambool, Broadmeadow, Tuncurry, Gold Coast, Townsville, Sydney’s Bella Vista Farm, Albury-Wodonga, Bendigo, and Adelaide.

Red Hot Summer Tour 2026 venues and locations

The tour deliberately targets regional and suburban audiences rather than capital-city stadiums. Venues range from horse racing clubs and showgrounds to coastal parks — a pattern that gives each location a distinct character while keeping infrastructure simple.

The table below lists confirmed venues alongside locations where resale listings indicate the tour may appear.

The pattern is clear: official confirmation covers six dates while resale platforms list roughly double that number — some may be placeholders rather than confirmed shows.

Who is touring 2026?

Within the Australian outdoor concert circuit, the Red Hot Summer Tour fills a specific gap: multi-act bills with a recognisable headliner at prices that undercut festival wristbands. JamBase lists Paul Kelly playing 11 solo dates in January through March 2026 in addition to the Red Hot Summer dates, but those are separate bookings rather than part of this tour.

Red Hot Summer Tour acts

The six Red Hot Summer acts form a tight package. Each artist has independently verified their involvement through official channels — Kelly through his own site, Kasey Chambers through hers — which reduces the risk of lineup surprises. No international extension has been announced; the tour focuses exclusively on Australian venues.

Announced 2026 tours

Ticketmaster and Songkick both list Paul Kelly 2026 tickets, confirming ticket infrastructure is in place. Tixel provides a fan-to-fan resale marketplace for sold-out or near-sold dates, with some shows listed from $140. Concert50 records show Hervey Bay as April 18 starting at 1:00 PM — consistent with the Hillarys gate-open time, suggesting the 1:00 PM gate / 8:00 PM headliner structure holds across the tour.

How to get Red Hot Summer Tour tickets?

Tickets route through two main channels: official sales via Ticketmaster and the Red Hot Summer Tour website, and fan-to-fan resale via Tixel for dates where primary-market tickets have sold out or are in high demand.

Ticketmaster process

Ticketmaster lists Paul Kelly as an artist and offers 2026 tickets directly. For the official Red Hot Summer Tour site, each venue page links through to a purchase flow — Victor Harbor, for example, has its own overview page that directs to the ticketing partner.

Availability 2026

Resale listings on Tixel cover approximately 15 venues including Tuncurry, Bendigo, Townsville, and Adelaide. Prices from $140 appear on some shows, though those are resale figures rather than official face value. The Hillarys show specifies an all-ages policy with under-12 entry free when accompanied by a paying adult — useful for family planning.

For fans in regions the tour skips, the six confirmed stops offer a concrete starting point while the broader rollout develops.