COVID-19 effect: Coachella, Stagecoach music festivals cancelled
Jan 30, 2021
Washington [US], January 30 : The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has put a halt to almost everything, with music festivals and various cultural activities facing the brunt of the health crisis. The latest to be impacted by the pandemic are Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals.
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and its companion Stagecoach country music festival have been cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, reported Variety.
Coachella 2021 had been planned for April 9-11 and 16-18 and Stagecoach was scheduled to take place on April 23 to 25. The news regarding the cancellation of the events was shared by Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr Cameron Kaiser.
A rep for the officer told Variety that the festivals could be rescheduled for a later date in the year. However, the officer deferred to Goldenvoice, the festivals' promoter, for further details regarding the events.
The rep also stated that an earlier version of the order accidentally referenced "concerns of a fall resurgence of COVID-19," which led people to believe that the festivals had been cancelled entirely. The order specifies "The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival currently scheduled for April 2021 are hereby cancelled."
Coachella 2020 and Stagecoach festivals were initially moved from the events' traditional month of April to October and then postponed again to April 2021. Coachella 2020 was being headlined by singers Travis Scott, Frank Ocean, and the rock band 'Rage Against the Machine'.
2020 was the first year since 2000 that Coachella did not occur. The popular music festival previously took a gap year break after its 1999 debut and its 2001 return.
Apart from Coachella and Stagecoach festivals, last week, the Glastonbury Festival, England's largest music gathering, was cancelled for a second consecutive year as the virus spiked anew in the country. The Governors Ball, New York's largest music festival, announced dates for September earlier this month, although further details were kept under wraps.
Coachella, which sprawls across two weekends, usually remains a star-studded affair with many big names performing at the music festival. Coachella 2019 featured performances from headliners Childish Gambino, Tame Impala, and Ariana Grande. Supporting artists included Khalid, Janelle Monae, The 1975, Dillon Francis, Diplo, Zedd and Wiz Khalifa.
