The organizers of three major rock festivals all scheduled to take place in May — Sonic Temple, Welcome To Rockville and Epicenter — say that they are “assessing the situation very carefully” with regards to whether the festivals can go forward.
Danny Wimmer Presents released the following statement about the fate of the festivals, saying, “Information is changing incredibly fast and we are assessing the situation very carefully with health professionals and government officials. As soon as we have a definitive direction, we'll be in touch and will be making an announcement here. Thank you for your patience in these uncertain times, stay tuned and stay safe.”
Epicenter is scheduled to take place from May 1st through the 3rd in Concord, North Carolina, while Welcome To Rockville is slated for May 8th through the 10th in Daytona Beach, Florida. Sonic Temple is scheduled for May 17th through the 19th in Columbus, Ohio.
Metallica is slated to headline Epicenter and Welcome To Rockville, doing two sets at each event. The band pulled out of Sonic Temple so that frontman James Hetfield can attend a recovery-related event following his stint in rehab last fall. Red Hot Chili Peppers and Tool have taken the band's place on that bill.
A number of festivals, including Coachella and South By Southwest, have already been canceled or postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Coachella has been pushed to October, while South By Southwest is scrapped for 2020.
