After rumors of cancellation continued to circulate after festival organizers postponed the ticket on-sale date last week, Woodstock 50 will officially not take place in 2019. The 50th anniversary of the original legendary event was set to take place in Watkins Glen, NY, with an eclectic mix of artists like Dead & Company, Santana, The Killers, Jay-Z, Chance the Rapper, Miley Cyrus and many more. One headliner, The Black Keys, had already dropped out of the lineup even before the ticketing pushback.
As Billboard reports, representatives from Dentsu Aegis Network, the organization funding Woodstock 50, released a statement confirming the festival’s cancellation.
“As a result and after careful consideration, Dentsu Aegis Network’s Amplifi Live, a partner of Woodstock 50, has decided to cancel the festival,” the statement reads. “As difficult as it is, we believe this is the most prudent decision for all parties involved.”
The statement goes a bit deeper into the reasoning behind the cancellation: “It’s a dream for agencies to work with iconic brands and to be associated with meaningful movements. We have a strong history of producing experiences that bring people together around common interests and causes which is why we chose to be a part of the Woodstock 50th Anniversary Festival. But despite our tremendous investment of time, effort and commitment, we don’t believe the production of the festival can be executed as an event worthy of the Woodstock Brand name while also ensuring the health and safety of the artists, partners and attendees.”
UPDATE: A statement from Woodstock 50 organizers refutes the cancellation announcement from Dentsu Aegis. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal, the statement reads, “Woodstock 50 vehemently denies the festival’s cancellation and legal remedy will [be] sought.”

12 Comments comments associated with this post
MarZaPhiGar
April 30, 2019 at 10:44 amDoes this mean no 5-yr anniversary of the Hudson Project either??
Snickers
April 30, 2019 at 9:23 amMove the entire thing to Locken and put $happy in charge! He’ll get it done!
here comes the rain again
April 29, 2019 at 5:52 pmjust like summer of ’69 when the village of woodstock said “no – no – no!” – time to find another dairy farm; and no mention of the 75,000 cap the county put on this ( all beyond band selection )
LeglizHemp
April 29, 2019 at 5:48 pm“But despite our tremendous investment of time, effort and commitment, we don’t believe the production of the festival can be executed as an event worthy of the Woodstock Brand name while also ensuring the health and safety of the artists, partners and attendees.”
Maybe the “time, effort and commitment” wasn’t as “tremendous” as you thought.
Eat Me
April 29, 2019 at 3:24 pmExited to hear what the “legal remedy” will do. Stupid for Lang et al to think this lineup would actually draw. Maybe the same entitled idiots that would signup and pay for the “FIRE FEST” in advance? Do you think Bobby & CO are going to return the money?
CreekFreak
April 29, 2019 at 1:26 pmThis has been a train-wreck from the beginning. I live an hour from Watkins Glen and I wouldn’t even think about going.
Bill
April 29, 2019 at 1:21 pm“Eclectic mix” was a big mistake. If they’d stuck with rock it probably would’ve worked. Dead/Santana/Plant with Jay-Z/Chance the Rapper/Miley Cyrus, really? Watkins Glen has had bad luck lately.
https://www.tmz.com/2019/04/29/woodstock-50-canceled-music-festival/
April 29, 2019 at 1:05 pmNever Give Up, Never Surrender!
Woodstock 50 is officially scrapped … at least according to the people putting up the money to produce the iconic music festival’s anniversary.
Honchos at Dentsu Aegis Network — the festival’s main investor — dropped the hammer Monday, saying, it doesn’t “believe the production of the festival can be executed as an event worthy of the Woodstock Brand name while also ensuring the health and safety of the artists, partners and attendees.”
Sounds like they were afraid Woodstock 50 would become Fyre Fest 2019.
Tickets for Woodstock 50 were supposed to go on sale last week, but never did. Organizers said they were trying to iron out logistics while waiting to hear back from the New York State Department of Health after applying for a mass gathering permit.
As we reported … the massive music and arts event was supposed to feature huge names like Jay-Z, Chance the Rapper, Imagine Dragons, Carlos Santana, Dead & Company and Halsey. We know at least some of the artists have NOT been informed the show’s off.
Worth noting … the promoter, Michael Lang, does not agree Woodstock 50 is sunk. He tells us Dentsu’s announcement was a “complete surprise,” but adds … they’re not giving up on the festival yet.
me
April 29, 2019 at 1:03 pmThe sad part is that Woodstock 50 could have been an awesome event had the organizers remembered who their target audience was… think something along the lines of the early Bonneroos, All Good Festivals and Mountain Jams… grass roots feel, not corporate “sponsored by…” feel.
me
April 29, 2019 at 12:58 pmIt boils down to this… when you start discussing the “Woodstock brand”, then you just lost the meaning of Woodstock… it’s not a brand, it’s a belief, a way of life, not a designer handbag. They lost sight of that right from the beginning. When names that you’d expect to see at Coachella start popping up on Woodstock posters, you’ve already guaranteed a failure. Coachella has their crowd and Woodstock has theirs… there may be some crossover but very little! Woodstock 50=New Coke…
Called it
April 29, 2019 at 12:57 pm“Dentsu Aegis Network’s Amplifi Live” ?????
Maybe if your company’s name involved proper English, more people would take you seriously?
Milk Dud
April 29, 2019 at 12:47 pmDamn, I heard Dickey was going to sit in with Greg! Hope they do it at Beacon instead.