Jack Johnson Credit: Tahnei Roy / Republic Records
Jack Johnson has a new movie coming out in 2026 and will give Tampa Bay fans a taste of it when he hits the road this summer.
Last week, the 50-year-old songwriter, filmmaker, surfer and eco-activist announced a 43-date tour that includes an August swing through the southeastern U.S., marking his first Bay area show since 2022.
The run, which stops in West Palm Beach and Tampa, arrived with a new single (“Hold On To The Light,” with instrumental duo Hermanos Gutiérrez) that will appear in “Surfilmusic” (stylized in all-caps), a movie that will feature Johnson.
“The new film celebrates the lifelong friendships and ocean-driven community that shaped Johnson’s path, and features many of the surfers who appeared in the original films, including Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, and the Malloy Brothers,” a press release says. “It also captures the shared spirit of exploration and creativity that continues to inspire his music and environmentalism today.”
Lake Street Dive opens the Florida shows.
The “Surfilmusic” soundtrack finds Johnson not only teaming up with the Hermanos Gutiérrez but reconnecting with Beastie Boys and Beck producer Mario Caldato Jr., who worked with Johnson on several albums including his 2003 sophomore outing On and On, 2005’s In Between Dreams, and 2013’s From Here to Now to You.
In the first trailer for the film with Chris Malloy, Johnson said that whenever he thinks about creativity, friendship is the throughline. “None of us could have made it on our own,” he adds.
That connectivity extends to his approach to touring.
In a 2022 interview with Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, Johnson—who in the past has donated the entirety of tour profits to environmental organizations—said that he’s able to square the conundrum of touring with his commitment to a greener earth not just through obvious positive aspects of touring, but by activating and donating to local nonprofits in every city his tour visits.
“After we leave, there’s energy from the show, both in funding these groups—because every night we put money from the show into nonprofits—and then also, I think, more importantly, is connecting the fans and this younger energy with these established nonprofits so that after we leave, there’s all these new members of these groups,” he added.
In addition to the local contributions, Johnson’s ‘Ohana Foundation will split $2 from every ticket between Reverb’s Climate Project Portfolio and All At Once nonprofit partners working on environmental initiatives in communities near each concert and across the country.
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This article appears in Nov. 6 – 12, 2025.
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