Climate change woes have just taken the debut of a brand new festival away from us. Coastal erosion in Santa Monica due to the effects of Hurricane Marie has made Ocean Way Festival cancel its inaugural event.
“Storm surf and runoff has caused significant beach erosion and the festival can no longer be safely held as planned,” organizers said on their website. “We were so excited to spend a weekend together on The Beach, but can share that plans are already underway to bring the festival to Santa Monica in 2027! Refunds are being processed automatically, and no further action is required on your part. Please allow a few business days for the refund to appear in your account. Thank you for your support. See you soon.”
Ocean Way Festival was slated to be a blockbuster event. Some of the biggest names in pop and rock were headlining, including Jack White, Olivia Dean, The Killers, and Khruangbin. Additionally, Sublime was bound to make a big return to the festival circuit with their new lead singer, Jakob Nowell.
It’s currently unknown if the festival will feature a lot of the same names or if they’ll start from scratch next year.
Ocean Way Festival Ruined by Erosion Concerns in Santa Monica
Fans on Instagram are naturally disappointed, some even calling it a conspiracy. One person in particular essentially compared it to Fyre Festival in 2017. “Wild how @cityofsantamonica is still having music events and tons of people on the pier,” they wrote. “Almost as if there’s actually, in fact, no damage.”
Similarly, another person petitioned to have a smaller version of the Ocean Way Festival on the Boardwalk instead. “Bringing music and dancing to the beach that weekend anyway! Let’s have our own mini festival on the boardwalk,” they commented.
For what it’s worth, Ocean Way Festival organizers aren’t the only ones struggling with weather-related cancellations. Werchter Boutique in Belgium, Germany, had to shut down early in order to get concertgoers home safely and beat the incoming weather woes. Perry herself apologized for the cancellation with a statement on Instagram.
“Sadly my set @WerchterBoutique tonight can’t happen due to a government-mandated cancellation because of the incoming inclement weather and crowd safety concerns,” Katy Perry wrote. “I was backstage at the show in the middle of hair and makeup when this news was delivered… The safety of all 55,000 of you always comes first and foremost.”
(Photo by Apu Gomes/Getty Images)
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