Coachella postponed to October, according to sources
UPDATE: the postponement is official.
The coronavirus has already caused the cancellation or postponement of many festivals and tours, including Ultra, SXSW, and Pearl Jam’s spring tour. According to sources, it’s lead to the postponement of yet another: Coachella 2020. Multiple sources are now reporting that Coachella is being moved to October. Journalist Yasahr Ali first broke the news on Twitter, writing:
Scoop: A source familiar with the arrangements tells me that the Coachella festival will be postponed due to Coronavirus concerns and moved to the weekends of October 9 and 16.
As of now, the same lineup is confirmed to perform.
Festival news twitter account Festive Owl confirmed the news separately, writing:
I can now CONFIRM #Coachella WILL be postponed until October 9th and 16th due to #coronavirus concerns.
Lineup will attempt to remain the same, but moving a festival this size isn’t easy.
They are currently working with artists and an official announcement is in the works.
Billboard says the move is not completely finalized, though:
Officials with promoter Goldenvoice are working on a plan to try and move the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio, California, to the weekends of Oct. 9 and Oct. 16 in an attempt to save the event from cancellation amid concerns about the coronavirus outbreak, according to high level sources. The AEG-owned concert promoter is also working to move the Stagecoach country music festival to October as well, possibly to Oct. 23.
With its first weekend originally scheduled to begin in a single month, Coachella’s fate has been the subject of much speculation, especially after three additional Riverside County, CA residents were discovered to be infected with the virus through local exposure, as NBC Los Angeles reports. A total of four people in the area are known to be infected at this time by officials.
The BNP Paribas Open, a tennis event scheduled in nearby Indian Wells, CA for March 9-22, was also recently cancelled.
UPDATE: the postponement is official.
