Woodstock 50 Is Now Officially Dead And Cancelled

Woodstock 50 Is Now Officially Dead And Cancelled | I Love Classic Rock Videos

Instagram feed of the official Woodstock 50 - @woodstock / Instagram

Looks like the 50th anniversary Woodstock commemoration has seen its final, fitting conclusion. The organizers have finally raised the white flag, after months of trying to make it happen despite several setbacks.

After Dentsu Aegis Network pulled out from their sponsorship deal with the organizers, everything began to go haywire, even losing its intended original venue in Watkins Glen, because of  a failure to pay $150,000.

While Robert Plant, John Fogerty, The Killers, and many more rock artists were part of the show, many were disappointed with the inclusion of pop and hiphop acts such as Miley Cyrus, Jay Z, and Imagine Dragons, among others. Soon enough, artists began pulling out of the commitment, resulting in a PR disaster.

Festival co-founder Michael Lang shared his sentiments with the recent happenings, “We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the Festival we imagined with the great line-up we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating.”

“When we lost the Glen and then Vernon Downs we looked for a way to do some good rather than just cancel. We formed a collaboration with HeadCount to do a smaller event at the Merriweather Pavilion to raise funds for them to get out the vote and for certain NGOs involved in fighting climate change. We released all the talent so any involvement on their part would be voluntary. Due to conflicting radius issues in the DC area many acts were unable to participate and others passed for their own reasons. (Provigil) I would like to encourage artists and agents, who all have been fully paid, to donate 10% of their fees to HeadCount or causes of their choice in the spirit of peace. Woodstock remains committed to social change and will continue to be active in support of HeadCount’s critical mission to get out the vote before the next election. We thank the artists, fans and partners who stood by us even in the face of adversity. My thoughts turn to Bethel and its celebration of our 50th Anniversary to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by Woodstock.”