Waves of Praise Gospel Fest Is Here: What to Know Before You Go
A practical, source-linked guide to Myrtle Beach Waves of Praise Gospel Fest: the remaining program times, free-entry details, road closure, parking, what to bring, and where to check the organizer’s current lineup.
Category: local | Published: 2026-09-04
This weekend, downtown Myrtle Beach has a different kind of volume: gospel music, lawn chairs, friends finding one another near the Pavilion, and a festival that is built around an open invitation rather than a ticket counter.
Myrtle Beach Waves of Praise Gospel Fest is in its eighth year, according to local coverage, with gospel artists, food, children’s activities, and a program that brings local, regional, and national voices to Burroughs & Chapin Pavilion Place.WMBF News My Horry News
If you are in town this weekend—or have lived here long enough to know that Ocean Boulevard can change character in a hurry—this is the useful version: where it is, what time the remaining music starts, what changes around the blocks nearby, and what to check before you head down.
The quick plan
| What | Current detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Burroughs & Chapin Pavilion Place, 812 N. Ocean Blvd., Myrtle Beach | WMBF News |
| Friday | Music begins at 6 p.m. | WMBF News |
| Saturday | Music begins at 4 p.m. | WMBF News |
| Entry | Free admission | Organizer information |
| Parking | Pavilion Parking Garage, 914 N. Kings Hwy., is the organizer’s listed parking location | Organizer information |
The city-side blocks are part of the experience, not just the route to the stage. WMBF reports that the roads between Eighth Avenue North and Ninth Avenue North on Ocean Boulevard are closed during the festival. If you are driving in, leave yourself a little room rather than treating the arrival like a last-minute beach-parking mission.WMBF News
The part to pack: light, comfortable, and current
The official event page says to bring a lawn chair and dress comfortably. It also says admission is free, outside food and drinks are not allowed inside the festival, bags must be clear and are subject to inspection, and guns, weapons, pets, and animals are not allowed.Organizer information
That is not the kind of detail that needs a dramatic warning label. It is simply the difference between getting settled for the music and walking back to the car because an old event-post assumption was wrong. Before you leave, check the organizer’s general information page again for any last-minute update.
The music: a full weekend, not just one familiar name
Local reporting describes more than 35 gospel artists on the weekend program. Friday’s coverage includes Pastor David Moore & Focus, Kevin Joyner & Mos, D. Hill & The Pearly Gates, Totally 4 Him, Jasmine La’Shae & Company, and praise and worship with Bishop David Baxter & Rhema. Saturday’s reported program includes Lisa Knowles-Smith & the Brown Singers, Dorinda Clark-Cole, Pastor Tim Rogers, Melvin Crispell III, Beverly Crawford, Jarell Smalls, Pastor Nell, Tracy Troy, DJ Allen and Righteous, Brown Boyz of New York, Steve Dalton & Leviticus, Young Men for Christ, Roneek and Purpose, Sent by God, James Scott & the JC Choir, Bishop Woodard & Trueway, the Myrtle Beach Waves of Praise Choir, and praise and worship with Bishop David Baxter & Rhema.My Horry News
The best current reference for the complete running order is still the organizer’s own event lineup page. Festival programs can change, and this guide is not a substitute for the stage announcement or the event team’s latest update.
More than a concert, and not pretending to be a tourism brochure
Promoter Reggie Dyson described the festival to My Horry News as a space where people come together spiritually, particularly when life has delivered more than enough hard news. That local purpose is what distinguishes this weekend from a generic calendar listing. It gives visitors one more way to experience Myrtle Beach as a real community, and it gives locals a gathering that belongs to the people in front of the stage as much as the people on it.My Horry News
The practical move is to arrive early, settle into your chair, leave the beach-day logistics at the beach, and let the schedule unfold. If you want another current event option after the final song, What’s POPPIN is Myrtle Beach Unlocked’s source-linked roundup. For city parking details beyond this festival’s listed garage, use the Parking Finder and always check the official source for block-specific rules.