West Philadelphia native DJ Jazzy Jeff will headline what Longwood Gardens is calling a first-of-its-kind event this Wednesday, September 9, spinning a 90-minute live set in the Main Fountain Garden as jets of water, colored lights and flame features respond to his mixing in real time. The show begins at 8 p.m. at the Kennett Square, Pennsylvania venue, and it flips the usual script for Longwood's famous water displays.
Rather than syncing the DJ's music to a pre-programmed fountain playlist, Longwood's fountain designers Tim Martin and Nate Hart will adjust water jets, lighting and effects live as Jazzy Jeff mixes, according to Longwood Gardens. Most fountain shows at the gardens are sequenced in advance, but this performance is built as a live, improvisational exchange between the DJ and the operators controlling the water. As WPVI-TV reports, Jazzy Jeff's music will be synchronized live with the illuminated fountains during the September 9 performance.
A DJ Known for Firsts Tries Something New
Jazzy Jeff, born Jeffrey Townes, told WPVI-TV he's done plenty of impressive things in his career but nothing quite like this fountain performance. The station's report notes he'll headline what Longwood is describing as a first-of-its-kind event at the gardens, and that Longwood itself has said the Main Fountain Garden has attracted guests from around the world.
The DJ's Philadelphia ties run deep. In February 1989, Townes and Will Smith made music history when their single “Parents Just Don't Understand” won the first-ever Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance, according to Parade. The duo famously boycotted that year's ceremony because the rap category had been left out of the live television broadcast.
Inside the Five-Acre Fountain That Makes It Possible
None of this would be technically possible without the Main Fountain Garden's 2017 overhaul. The five-acre space reopened after a two-year revitalization with 1,719 water jets, 30 propane flame features, 1,389 LED lights and water streams capable of reaching 175 feet, per The Washington Post. The system relies on compressed air to send water bursts into dramatic patterns.
The garden traces back to 1931, when Longwood founder Pierre S. du Pont designed it after being inspired by European water displays and the hydraulics he saw at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, according to Syncronorm. That 2017 reconstruction replaced 83-year-old underground infrastructure with a quarter-mile of modern tunnels beneath the garden.
Part of a Bigger Investment in the Gardens
The September 9 concert falls within Longwood's 2026 Festival of Fountains season, which runs from May 8 through September 27 and includes daily water displays plus nighttime illuminated shows, per Longwood Gardens. This year's summer concert series was presented in partnership with music promoter Rising Sun Presents.
The fountain show also arrives just two years after Longwood completed “Longwood Reimagined,” a $250 million, 17-acre transformation finished in November 2024 and centered on a new 32,000-square-foot West Conservatory glasshouse designed by Weiss/Manfredi, as reported by PhillyVoice. The glass structure was built to appear as though it floats over surrounding pools of water. Spanning 1,100 acres in Chester County, Longwood draws roughly 1.6 million visitors a year and ranks as the most visited paid public garden in North America, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
What Tickets Cost and Where the Money Flows Locally
Tickets for the show are available through Longwood Gardens, with lawn seating priced at $70 for general admission and $61 for members. Chair placement is permitted starting at noon, and blankets are strictly prohibited. Ticket purchases include full-day admission to the gardens along with access to a dedicated standing and dancing area.
Longwood's pull as a tourist draw ripples well beyond its gates. The gardens generate an estimated $360 million in local economic impact and support more than 3,000 regional jobs, according to Patch, and county tourism agencies build much of their marketing strategy around the venue. That economic gravity has been visible lately in downtown Kennett Square, where a developer agreed in March 2026 to acquire two State Street commercial buildings for about $34 million, with closing expected the following month and plans to convert one into roughly 60 residential apartments. New dining investment has followed too, adding to the downtown changes.
