North Myrtle Beach is rebranding its annual Irish Italian International Festival as NMB Live!, a genre-spanning street festival set for Saturday, September 26, 2026. The city’s Parks & Recreation Department has announced the change, which will feature three stages and over 150 vendors.
What’s Changing
The original festival, which began in 2003, drew roughly 15,000 visitors each year and featured Irish and Italian music, food, and culture. The new festival will have a broader focus, with a mix of music genres and a dedicated kids’ zone.
The city has not released a formal explanation for the rebranding, but the change suggests a shift towards a more general entertainment-focused event. The festival footprint has also grown, with Main Street closing from Ash Street to Ocean Boulevard from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Impact on the Community
Longtime festivalgoers may notice changes in the event’s logistics, including an earlier date and a longer road closure window. The city has not announced whether signature elements like the spaghetti-eating contest will return in some form.
Residents who valued the cultural specificity of the old festival may want to attend city council or Parks & Recreation meetings to ask about the change. The city’s website still carries a header from an older event page, suggesting that the rebranding moved faster than the city’s website infrastructure could keep up.
Original reporting: MyrtleBeachSC News — read the source article.
