Splendour in the Grass reschedules 2021 festival, moves to July 2022
On yet another dark day for music fans, the one bright spot is that the headliners for 2021 are all confirmed for the new dates next year.
The horror run for major Australian events in 2021 continues, as the organisers of Byron Bay festival Splendour in the Grass announced on Friday that the event planned for late November has been rescheduled.
“With vaccine rollout progressing more slowly than anticipated, we have made the decision to move the 20th anniversary edition of the festival to July 2022,” said co-founders Jessica Ducrou and Paul Piticco in a statement.
“We are confident that moving the festival to July 2022 will finally see us enjoying Splendour in the Grass in all its glory,” they said. “More of the population will be vaccinated, international talent will have the ability to enter the country more freely and we’ll be able to deliver the Splendour in the Grass that you know and love.”
On yet another dark day for music fans, the one bright spot is that the headliners previously announced for the 2021 edition are all confirmed for the new dates, July 22-24.
British alternative band Gorillaz will perform last on opening night, while US rock act The Strokes will headline the Saturday night and US hip-hop artist Tyler, The Creator will close the festival on Sunday.
The event co-founders also used their announcement on Friday to make a direct call for financial aid on behalf of fellow live entertainment industry workers, who it seems will see little joy or income until the new year.
“Australia’s live music industry was already on its knees and the current outbreak – this time with a lack of JobKeeper or wage subsidy – is having a major impact on the livelihoods of everyone within the sector,” said Ducrou and Piticco.
“From the many sole traders and small businesses, to the larger tour and event promoters, our industry is in desperate need of government help.”
“We send a heartfelt thanks to all of our Splendour community for sticking with us during this time – your support means the world to us,” said the co-founders. “Please retain your tickets and support live music if you wish to attend Splendour in July.”
When the event was last held at North Byron Parklands in July 2019, it was headlined by Fremantle rock act Tame Impala, US artist Childish Gambino and Adelaide hip-hop trio Hilltop Hoods.
No crowds have gathered at the site since then, although thousands of music fans from across the globe recently experienced a virtual recreation of the festival grounds.
On July 24 and 25, the organisers hosted an Australian-first “extended reality” online streaming event, Splendour XR, which featured international acts including The Killers, Khalid and Charli XCX.
Created with the assistance of $1.67m from the federal government’s RISE fund, the event allowed ticketholders to watch exclusive performances on their television, computers or mobile devices, while those who owned virtual reality equipment could log onto a social platform named Sansar to interact with other festivalgoers in-game.
The Splendour in the Grass announcement on Friday comes just days after Bluesfest, the other major annual music festival held near Byron Bay, made the call to shift its plans for an October event back to April 2022.
The extent of Covid outbreaks, lockdowns and travel restrictions across Australia are having a suffocating effect on an industry that relies on social gatherings to employ thousands of skilled workers.
It’s not only the organisers of multi-day camping events being forced to make tough calls, either.
On Thursday, rock singer-songwriter Jimmy Barnes announced the cancellation of a nine-date indoor theatre tour.
Barnes – who is among the headliners at the rescheduled Bluesfest 2022 – had sold more than 20,000 tickets across five states, in what was going to be one of the most successful tours of the year.
“My band, my crew and music fans around the country are all doing it really tough right now, so these latest round of cancelled gigs will be yet another kick in the guts for them at a really bad time,” said Barnes in a statement.
“Hopefully if we all do the right things and get vaccinated as soon as possible then we’ll be enjoying gigs together before too much longer.”
More Coverage
