Coachella Concert Organizers Ask 2020 Acts to Play Next Year Instead

(Bloomberg) -- The organizers of the Coachella music festival are asking artists lined up for the annual event to play in 2021 instead, according to people familiar with the matter, the clearest sign yet that this year’s show will be canceled.

Rage Against the Machine, Travis Scott and Frank Ocean are set to headline the festival, which takes place every year on polo fields in Indio, California, a desert town a few hours outside of Los Angeles. Coachella is the largest music festival in the U.S., generating as much as $100 million in sales for promoter Goldenvoice and its parent AEG.

Goldenvoice has already postponed Coachella to October from April in response to the coronavirus pandemic. But that decision was made when less was known about the health risks. With many government officials imposing social distancing and other restrictions on businesses as they reopen, the odds of pulling off an event that attracts as many as 200,000 people grow dimmer by the day.

Goldenvoice, which has said little about Coachella’s future since announcing the postponement in March, didn’t respond to a request for comment. Chief Executive Officer Paul Tollett and his team need to firm up plans with artists and settle financial issues like insurance, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans are still in flux. Local health officials also have to weigh in.

Financial Impact

Goldenvoice may be able to minimize its losses by persuading fans to roll over their current tickets to 2021. Some of the acts have consented to playing next year, but others have yet to do so for both health and financial reasons, according to the people. Not every performer in the 2020 lineup has been asked to play next year, according to one person.

The concert industry has all but given up on staging large events in 2020, at least in the U.S., the country with the most confirmed cases of the virus. Live Nation Entertainment Inc., the world’s largest concert promoter, has targeted summer 2021 for festivals to return.

“We believe 2021 can return to show volume and fan attendance at levels consistent with what we’ve seen in recent years,” CEO Michael Rapino said on a call with analysts on May 7.

In the short term, the music industry is hurting. Ticketing companies, promoters and talent agencies with large music-booking divisions have all had to fire or furlough staff. Live Nation raised $1.2 billion in a bond offering this month and called off the acquisition of a major Mexican promoter.

Goldenvoice is more insulated than many smaller operators since it is part of AEG, a sports, real estate and music company owned by billionaire Philip Anschutz. AEG is the second-largest promoter, after Live Nation.

But AEG’s sports and music businesses are suffering financially due to the shutdown of live events. Coachella is far and away the concert division’s bigger moneymaker. Tollett staged the 20th edition of the event last year, and released a documentary about the festival this year on YouTube.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.