Merriweather Not Hosting Woodstock, Festival Canceled

COLUMBIA, MD — Woodstock is not coming to Columbia this year. In fact, organizers of the festival celebrating peace and music said the 50-year-anniversary event will not happen at all.

"We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the festival we imagined," Woodstock Music and Arts Festival co-founder Michael Lang said in a statement Wednesday, July 31.

Merriweather Post Pavilion and Howard County were ready to host the 50th anniversary of the music festival in Maryland, but officials reported Wednesday that the event's promoters could not get performers to fill the lineup.

"Due to conflicting radius issues in the D.C. area, many acts were unable to participate and others passed for their own reasons," Lang said.

According to Howard County Executive Calvin Ball, the promoters of Woodstock 50 reached out to Merriweather Post Pavilion and Howard County recently about bringing the festival to Columbia in August.

"Howard County and Merriweather were fully prepared to put on a world-class concert, if the festival promoters could secure the acts," Ball said. "Unfortunately, the festival promoters were unable to fulfill their obligation, and Woodstock 50 will no longer be taking place at Merriweather Post Pavilion."

He added: "I share in the disappointment of everyone."

RELATED: Woodstock 50 Festival Canceled — Maybe

Originally, the plan for Woodstock 50 called for a three-day music festival Aug. 16 in Watkins Glen, New York, but the site operator canceled the license for the event in June after organizers missed payments, according to Billboard.

Performers such as Dead & Co., The Raconteurs, Miley Cyrus, Jay-Z, The Black Keys and Carlos Santana all canceled their performances at Woodstock 50 in the weeks that followed, Spin reported.

Setbacks actually began months earlier. Woodstock 50's original financial backer, international media company Dentsu Aegis Network, announced April 29 that the festival would be canceled after disputes with festival producers, including Lang, according to Rolling Stone.

The dispute went to court, where a judge ruled Woodstock 50 could go on without Dentsu Aegis. As organizers scrambled to save the festival, it got new financial backing and ran into more issues with permitting in New York, Variety reported.

So producers looked outside the state where the original Woodstock was held, landing on Maryland.

RELATED: Woodstock Organizers Want To Move Festival To Maryland

Since the announcement earlier in the week that the festival may be held at Merriweather Post Pavilion, organizers said they released performers from their contracts and had been planneing to host Woodstock 50 as a free event. People were encouraged to donate funds that would have gone to tickets to voter registration group HeadCount to fight climate change instead.

"We worked hard to find a way to produce a proper tribute — and some great artists came aboard over the last week to support Woodstock 50 — but time simply ran short," principal of Woodstock 50 Greg Peck said in a statement. "We are greatly disappointed and thank all of our supporters, including the team at Merriweather Post Pavilion and Howard County Executive Calvin Ball. Woodstock’s values of peace and tolerance are more important today than ever for all of us to stand for, and we look to the future for ways to honor and celebrate these ideals."

Ball reflected that the chance to host the festival was a gift in itself and showcased the county's appeal.

"Initially, when this festival was in search of a new home, we saw an opportunity to bring a piece of American history to our storied stage," Ball said. "Howard County is used to hosting big concerts, from Virgin FreeFest to Sweetlife to Jazzfest and more. We had the experience, the infrastructure and the passion to make this happen."

Since Merriweather Post Pavilion opened in 1967 — two years before Woodstock — it has hosted performers such as Janis Joplin and Led Zeppelin.

"While Woodstock 50 will not be coming to Howard County, we continue to offer tremendous cultural events at Merriweather Post Pavilion and beyond," Ball said.

SEE ALSO: Merriweather 2019 Lineup: Concerts, Festivals, Performers

"Hopefully, with plenty of time to prepare, Merriweather will become the site of a future festival that captures the original vibe," Seth Hurwitz, chairman of I.M.P., which operates Merriweather, said in a statement. "A lot of people clearly wanted it to happen."