The month in music: everything that mattered from September 2026

We went quiet for a few weeks, and the music did not. Here is the month you need to know about, India first, with our full stories linked so you can go deep on whatever grabs you.

The big India stories

Diljit Dosanjh is playing the world's biggest cricket ground. He announced it from the stage at Wembley on 12 September: the AURA tour comes to Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium on 21 November 2026, so far the only Indian date. Dates, tickets and timings here.

Spotify RAP91 Live is back for its fifth edition. It returns to Mumbai on 24 October with DIVINE, Arivu and a lineup rapping in nine languages, and this year it is a Premium-only event. Here is how to get in.

The festival calendar filled up. Sunburn moves to Mahalaxmi Racecourse on 18 and 19 December, with DJ Snake joining The Chainsmokers and Sebastian Ingrosso at the top of the bill (full story). And if you missed it, Lollapalooza India 2027 dropped its lineup for 23 to 24 January.

Mumbai concerts might get pricier. The BMC is weighing a steep hike in entertainment tax, and the reports do not agree on how it would apply to gigs. We laid out what is actually on the table.

The business moved in. Warner Music Group opened a global tech and engineering hub in Bengaluru, and a report says HYBE is exploring a K-pop festival in India. That one is unconfirmed, so read what is real and what is only reported before you plan outfits.

Bollywood went orchestral. Mithoon will reimagine Subhash Ghai's film songs with a 70-piece orchestra at Jio World Garden on 11 December. Details here.

Artists we are betting on

This month we started The Cosign properly. Taba Chake is taking Arunachal to Europe, five cities in five nights from 7 October. Lo! Peninsula are making shoegaze out of Manipur's hardest years. And Emiway Bantai is thirteen years into doing it entirely his way.

Records to know

• The F16s are back with All Dogs Go To Heaven on 21 October, their first album in ten years. Our guide.
• Quavo made QRÖMELIFE with Pharrell. Everything you need to know.
• Victoria Monét returned with 22 tracks on Frequency Of Love. Our guide.
• Tinashe put out Popstar, 16 songs with no features. Our guide.
• U2 announced Carnaval De Luz for 13 November, including Dolly Parton's final recording. What we know.
• Drake and Don Toliver dropped "Solar Eclipse" on a four-song HABIBTI (FOMO) update. The details.

The global conversation

BTS and Stray Kids are sitting out the 2027 Grammys over the new Asian pop category, and the Recording Academy says the category stays. Why it matters.

The VMAs belonged to Madonna, with seven wins on 27 September. Winners and moments.

Fontaines D.C. mapped out 2027, and Mumbai comes first. The tour.

Macklemore says his Free Palestine tour sold out immediately. The story.

Looking back

Songs in the Key of Life turned 50, and Stevie Wonder shared four songs he had kept back (read it). Mac Miller's The Divine Feminine turned 10, with three songs finally released (read it). And we said goodbye to Mighty Sparrow, the King of Calypso, who died at 91.

Your soundtrack

We picked the songs that defined September 2026, from Asha Bhosle's final film song to Raga and Seedhe Maut. Start there.

We are back on the desk every day from here. Tell us what we should be covering.