Woodstock 50 artists will not play, according to agents

Woodstock 50 – is it happening or not? The fate of the festival has been questioned in recent days, after financial partner Dentsu Aegis Network issued a statement announcing its supposed cancellation. "Despite our considerable investment of time, effort and commitment," they wrote, "we do not believe that festival production can be achieved as a worthy event for the Woodstock brand while ensuring the health and safety of artists, partners and participants. Amplifi Live, Dentsu's investment division, also spoke to the media, describing the necessary infrastructure, such as water sources and sanitation, as "far behind."

The organizers of the festival, including the co-founder of Woodstock Michael Lang, immediately denied the cancellation, insisting that Dentsu "does not have the right to cancel the festival unilaterally". Lang doubled his statement in a new statement yesterday, in which he insisted: "We will not give up and Woodstock 50 will be held and be awesome! Schuyler County officials in New York state also expressed "disappointment" with the cancellation, saying it would be "a huge economic loss for the county."

However, as Billbaord According to reports, even if Lang manages to save the festival, reserved artists can not play. Several booking agents confirmed Display panel that their artists were hired by Dentsu and Amplifi Live to perform, and when Dentsu announced the cancellation of the festival, they were released from these contracts.

Display panel also points out that Lang and other festival organizers may not be able to use the Woodstock 50 name for all the events they are able to concoct together following the cancellation of Dentsu:

Lang and his partners are co-owners of the Woodstock name through the Woodstock Ventures holding company, which they then leased to a separate holding company, Woodstock 50 LLC, created on August 31, 2018 according to the documents. from the NYS State Department. We do not know who controls Woodstock 50 although Display panel confirmed that Crescent Hotel hotelier Greg Peck was a member of the Woodstock 50 board of directors and that some investors in the group were represented by Beverly Hills Attorney Alex Weingarten.

Although the details of the Woodstock Venture license agreement for the Woodstock 50 name are unknown, Lang is unlikely to be able to use the Woodstock 50 name for the event he is trying to create from the ashes of his vision. original. In fact, it seems he has already stopped using the name Woodstock 50 – he signed the letter as Woodstock Ventures.

Lang also gave a new interview with Variety where he promised, once again, "we will get there". "We are in discussion with two parties to replace the position of Dentsu," he said. Variety, "And hope to be able to get [tickets] on sale in the coming weeks. These nights will be neither Live Nation nor AEG, for which the organizers would have asked for $ 20 million in funding, but refused. Lang denies that to Variety, saying that it was "not us, and Dentsu does not tell them, so I think it was just a rumor."

Speaking of Dentsu, Lang says, "They do not really know about our company, its subtleties or subtleties, and I think they're probably very concerned about their public image, and when there is controversy … can -be … these are just speculations, which I hate to do, but maybe it had to do with that. The Japanese are very proud and pay attention to their image. It's the music business – it can be a little muddy. "

He criticized the "relationship with Dentsu" for delaying finalizing a permit for the festival, saying: "Things were slow to start in general, but it took a long time to conclude some contracts that would have moved all these processes. " long, so we had to hurry up. "

Lily Variety"Full interview with Lang here.

UPDATE: Rolling stone reports that Woodstock's Superfly producers, also originally from Bonnaroo and Outside Lands, ended their participation in the festival. Lang had said Vulture that the festival was "moving to another production entity" and that "it was finishing the discussions this week", so the news is not a surprise, but a source Rolling stone spoke with called "catastrophic."