Coachella 2021 has been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In an announcement on Friday, a US public health officer signed an order which made Coachella and the Stagecoach Music festival’s April 2021 dates impossible.
The order reads, “This Order recognizes that both the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Music Festival are music concerts and gatherings of an international scope, attracting hundreds of thousands of attendees from many countries, including several disproportionately afflicted by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. This order is intended to reduce the likelihood of exposure to COVID-19, thereby slowing the spread of COVID-19 in communities worldwide.”
This marks the third consecutive disruption to Coachella’s scheduling.
Its initial 2020 dates were pushed back, then the show was cancelled altogether.
This new blow to the music industry comes after Glastonbury organisers Michael and Emily announced that the 2021 edition of the UK flagship festival would be cancelled too.
They said in a statement, “With great regret, we must announce that this year’s Glastonbury festival will not take place, and that this will be another enforced fallow year for us.”
“In spite of our efforts to move heaven and earth, it has become clear that we simply will not be able to make the festival happen this year. We are so sorry to let you all down.”
With Covid-19 vaccines being rolled out globally, hopefully 2022 will look brighter for music fans, performers and those reliant on live music as their source of income.