Rising costs leave music festivals ‘struggling’, organizers say

Rising costs are forcing music festivals across the UK and Republic of Ireland to struggle to survive, organizers have said.

At least 42 festivals in the UK have announced postponement, cancellation or complete closure in 2024, according to the Association of Independent Festivals (AIF).

In the Republic of Ireland, there have been a number of high-profile cancellations in recent months, including major events like Body and Soul in County Westmeath and Wild Roots 2024 in County Sligo.

The AIF’s John Rostron said many organizers and festival-goers are feeling the impact of a “financial squeeze” and that this has ultimately stopped many festivals from taking place.

Mr Rostron said that as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, many organizers have “zero liquidity” and rising costs across the board are impacting their ability to hold financially viable events .

“Everyone has good days and bad weeks, we understand that, but what we are seeing is it is getting worse,” he said.

“Supply chain costs, ticketing and many other factors mean events like these are becoming increasingly difficult to organize.”

Director of the Stendhal Festival in County Londonderry, Ross Parkhill, said putting on a festival is extremely difficult and every year it is uncertain whether they can afford it.

Mr Parkhill said many independent festivals are still struggling to survive post-pandemic.

“Our artist programming budget is probably about 25 percent of our overall budget, which is substantial,” he added.

“For fees over a few thousand euros you pay a 50% deposit, and quite often for higher fees you pay 100% before the gig, which is a lot of pressure.

“In our world, the fundraising climate is not ideal and you remain quite fluid in many decisions based on how confident you are in selling your tickets.”

Mr Parkhill said they were fortunate to be financially able to hold the festival again this year and looked forward to welcoming music lovers to Ballymully Cottage Farm, near Limavady.

Londonderry-based band Lavengro were previously confirmed for the Wild Roots 2014 line-up next weekend, only to recently learn it would no longer take place.

Wild Roots organizers said the cancellation was due to “circumstances beyond their control.”

The band’s lead guitarist David Healy told BBC News NI the financial impact festival cancellations had on them as a band.

Mr Healy said when a band is booked for a festival they often have to arrange their own transport and accommodation, which involves paying deposits, some of which can never be refunded.

“We had a lot of festivals booked and had a busy summer, but then we noticed a few gigs were being taken away from us due to cancellations,” he said.

“It’s not just you who are losing out financially by simply not attending the festival, there are a number of other things that are impacting the band financially and logistically.

“When you cancel accommodation or transportation, you put down deposits in advance and sometimes you can’t get them back.”