Jack White is playing South Africa for the first time. Here’s everything you need to know.
Jack White, the man who spent the 2000s convincing a generation that rock and roll wasn’t dead, just under-produced, is finally bringing his live show to South African soil. Presented by BreakOut Events, White will perform two shows this December, his first ever on the continent.
When and Where
Johannesburg: Friday 11 December 2026 The Old Park Station, 140 Carr St, Newtown 5pm to 11pm Tickets from R1,695 (excluding booking fees), limited to 3,000
Cape Town: Monday 14 December 2026 Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Rhodes Dr, Newlands 6pm to 10pm Tickets from R1,295 (excluding booking fees)
Both shows are age-restricted: no under-5s, and anyone under 18 needs a parent or guardian with them.
Who Is Jack White, and Why Does It Matter
If you know one White Stripes song, it’s probably “Seven Nation Army”, the bassline that’s been chanted at football stadiums for two decades. But reducing Jack White to that one riff undersells what he’s actually done to rock music.
Alongside Meg White, he built The White Stripes into the sound of a genre trying to strip itself back down to blues and bone at a time when rock had gone bloated and overproduced. When that project ran its course, he didn’t slow down, he multiplied: The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, then a solo career that’s arguably outdone all of it. Albums like Blunderbuss, Lazaretto and Boarding House Reach have kept him weird and relevant well into his fifties, refusing to settle into legacy-act mode.
He’s also the founder of Third Man Records, the Nashville label and studio that’s become shorthand for vinyl culture and analogue recording in an industry that mostly moved on from both. If you care about music being made on tape instead of in the cloud, White is one of the few people at his level still insisting on it.
His seventh studio album, Frozen Charlotte, dropped in July, led by the single “Neighbors Blues”. Critics have been unanimous that it’s some of his most confident work in years, drawing comparisons to the momentum of 2024’s Grammy-nominated No Name. The album was recorded straight off the back of the No Name world tour, with White and his band going straight from stage to studio at Third Man Studio in Nashville.
Live, White has a reputation for genuine unpredictability, sets that shift night to night and pull from across his entire catalogue rather than running on rails. For SA audiences who’ve never had the chance to see that in person, this is it.
How to Get Tickets
General tickets go on sale 9am, Wednesday 9 September 2026 via Webtickets. There’s also a Laylo presale opening 10am SAST, Tuesday 8 September 2026, for anyone who wants first crack before general sale.
Given the Jo’burg show is capped at 3,000 tickets, expect it to move fast. Buy only through official channels.
