The DMC World DJ Championships will begin the road to their 41st edition with a free launch party at Camden Market on Sunday 16 August 2026.

Taking place at the Amphitheatre in Stables Market from 3pm until 7pm, the four-hour event will feature World DMC Champion Cutmaster Swift alongside UK turntablism figure DJ Pogo, with MysDiggi hosting the afternoon.

Entry is completely free, with no ticket or advance registration required. Visitors can walk into the Amphitheatre and join the event throughout the afternoon, with music spanning hip hop, funk, disco, soul and turntablism.

The launch party also includes free DMC merchandise, vinyl, slipmats and exclusive giveaways, offering an accessible introduction to the championship ahead of its main London programme later in the year.

DMC41 will take place across Camden from 12 to 14 November 2026, bringing three days of competition, performances and DJ culture to venues around the borough. The event represents a return to the city where the DMC World DJ Championships began in 1985.

Since its launch, the competition has become one of the most recognised platforms for turntablism, giving DJs the opportunity to compete through scratching, beat juggling, transforming and original routines built around the turntable and mixer.

Previous champions include A-Trak, Craze, DJ Qbert, Cash Money, Roc Raida, C2C, Scratch Perverts, DJ Fly and Kentaro. Across different eras of the competition, the DMC stage has provided an early international platform for DJs who later became established names across hip hop, electronic music and wider DJ culture.

The Camden launch keeps the focus on the foundations of the competition: technical control, selection, performance and the ability to use the turntable as an instrument. Cutmaster Swift brings direct championship history to the event, while DJ Pogo has remained closely associated with the development of UK turntablism and hip hop DJing.

With MysDiggi hosting, the afternoon is designed as an open public event rather than a ticketed competition. Its location inside Camden Market also gives casual visitors the chance to encounter the DMC format before the full championship programme begins in November.

The main DMC41 event will run from Thursday 12 November until Saturday 14 November, with competition rounds and performances taking place across Camden. Tickets are currently available, with day-one entry starting at £22 and day-two tickets starting at £35.75.

The official launch party takes place at the Amphitheatre, Stables Market, Camden Market, London, on Sunday 16 August 2026, from 3pm to 7pm. Entry is free, and no registration is required.

Main image credit: Jeff Straw.