The biggest narrative surrounding this year’s Dreamville Festival was that it’s the final installment, as J. Cole said in December 2024. But, it turns out that doesn’t mean Raleigh, North Carolina will be left hanging.

On stage this past weekend, Cole said (as seen in this video), “We will be back, just in a newer form.”

Officials previously confirmed this at an April 3 press conference, where it was noted that a new iteration of the festival will be hosted at Raleigh’s Dorothea Dix Park for at least the next four years. As Billboard notes, Dreamville and Live Nation festival producer Sascha Stone Guttfreund said, “We’re going to be here for years to come. This is a multi-year deal, and we’re so excited to be working with the city of Raleigh together on something new and exciting, and to continue to build on this incredible thing that we’ve done over the years.”

Raleigh City Manager Marchell Adams-David also noted, “We’re going to continue on the same path that’s been successful for us. Our consumers have told us what they like, and we’re going to try to provide that to them for the next four years. […] We’re using the Dreamville label to a certain extent. [Cole] will obviously be involved, whether or not he headlines. That’s probably not going to be an occurrence, but he is a local resident. He is totally committed to this community, and he is totally committed to this festival.”

Cole’s manager and business partner Ibrahim “Ib” Hamad added, “We wanted to keep the feeling of just the community. We call it our family reunion. I think a lot of people from all over the world and from all 50 states come in, and it’s good to be able to do it here in North Carolina.”