Festival to commemorate 50 years of Woodstock cancelled

By David Chipakupaku, news reporter

Woodstock 50, an anniversary festival to celebrate the original 1969 music event, has been cancelled.

The festival has faced a series of setbacks, with artists set to perform at the event reportedly pulling out in recent days.

The three-day festival had originally been scheduled to take place from 16 to 18 August, but problems included permit issues and the loss of the project’s original financial backer.

“We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the festival we imagined with the great lineup we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating,” festival co-founder Michael Lang said in a statement.

Artists including Robert Plant, Halsey, The Killers, Janelle Monae and Chance the Rapper were due to perform at the three-day festival.

But in June, the festival lost its venue at a racecourse in New York. Organisers were also refused access to another site they applied for at the beginning of July.

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Several artists, including headliners Jay-Z and Miley Cyrus, reportedly dropped out of Woodstock 50 just days before the festival’s cancellation.

The Woodstock anniversary will still be celebrated, with former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr set to perform at the 1969 site in Bethel, New York.

The original Woodstock festival pushed a message of peace and love and was a groundbreaking music event.

Performers at the festival in 1969 included Jimi Hendrix, the Grateful Dead and The Who.