
Crowd shot at Governors Ball 2019
Photo: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Governors Ball 2020 Canceled Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
Governors Ball, New York City's marquee multi-day, all-genre music festival, has canceled its 2020 edition due to the growing coronavirus pandemic.
Festival organizers announced the event's cancellation in a statement shared on the festival's official website and social media accounts Thursday (March 26). The statement also indicates that Governors Ball will return in June 2021 and that festival organizers are already working on next year's edition.
"Simply put – due to current government mandates and the evolving situation in NYC, it is neither safe nor prudent to move forward with our June dates," the statement read. "The well-being of our fans, artists, staff, vendors, partners, and the surrounding NYC community is always our #1 priority.
"Over the past few weeks, we have gone to great lengths to find a postponement date that works for all parties involved. Due to a myriad of planning and logistical issues, we have come to the conclusion that there are no sufficient options available to us. We are pushing ahead, and are already jumping into plans for 2021.
"These are crazy and unprecedented times, but New Yorkers are no strangers to challenges. As a city and a community, we will all get through this. New York always does. Now is the time to be smart, look out for one another, and do our part to help the city and the world. We encourage everyone to listen to health officials, be safe, and be excited for the future when we are all on the other side of this."
The festival is offering refunds for festival tickets and transportation passes to customers who purchased them through the Governors Ball ticketing page. They are also offering purchasers the option to transfer their ticket(s) to next year's festival. More information about ticket transfers and refunds is available on the festival website.
Originally scheduled to take place June 5-7 at Randall's Island Park in New York City, the festival, which was to celebrate its 10th annual installment this year, had recently announced its 2020 lineup, which featured headliners Tame Impala, Missy Elliott, Flume and Vampire Weekend, among many other acts.
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Governors Ball is the latest festival to be canceled or postponed this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. This month alone, Glastonbury, Bonnaroo, New Orleans Jazz Fest, BottleRock Napa Valley, the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Coachella and Stagecoach, Ultra Music Festival, SXSW, Lollapalooza Argentina, Something In The Water, Treefort Music Fest, Afro Nation Puerto Rico, Brussels' Listen! Festival, Record Store Day and several other major events and festivals around the world were called off or rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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