'I Am Going to Sue Someone': Customers Demand Money, Discounts Over Last-Minute Cancellation of Music Festival Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, located in Manchester, Tennessee, announced that the four-day show will not go on as planned.
By Emily Rella
Yet another music festival is canceled amid the ongoing pandemic, but this one ironically enough has nothing to do with rising infection rates.
Rather, it has to do with rising water rates.
Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, located in Manchester, Tennessee, announced that the four-day show would not go on due to weather-related complications brought on by Tropical Storm Ida.
"We are absolutely heartbroken to announce that we must cancel Bonnaroo," the festival posted on its Twitter account later Tuesday afternoon. "While this weekend's weather looks outstanding, currently Centeroo is waterlogged in many areas, the ground is incredibly saturated on our tollbooth paths, and the campgrounds are flooded to the point that we are unable to drive in or park vehicles safely."
Bonnaroo was set to take place from September 2 to September 5.
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The organizers of the festival said they have "run out of options" as far as proceeding with the festival and that all tickets purchased through Bonnaroo's official ticket provider, Front Gate Tickets, would be fully refunded within 30 days.
However, as a festival that draws in many attendees and travelers from far and long, many were furious and disgruntled at the sunk costs that come as a result of the festival's cancellation.
You can't do this?! We just drove 18 hours over night for this!
— Taylor Swyter (@Tswyter) August 31, 2021
I feel like we at least deserve some pics to help us understand why this is happening. This will probably really help your case with people who are upset...
— Dashboi (@dashboi_app) August 31, 2021
I came from Memphis, but I feel so badly for everyone that drove or flew even farther. How are you going to compensate those individuals??
— liquor mortis (@recentlyrigored) August 31, 2021
i literally drove 700 miles and spend $5000 to see this concert. how can you do this to us?? i am going to sue someone. this is bullcrap
— nick reinhart (@bbqdbrains) August 31, 2021
Yall better refund the tickets and also give people an extra $400-500 bcuz of the stuff people bought for the entire week.
— Nikkolai (@E1ectricKoola1d) August 31, 2021
Hey not to be THAT guy but I spent over $10K coming out to see the show and now I'm stuck at my terminal wondering what I'm supposed to do. I spent half of that money on travel snacks and the rest on vip passes to the artists' lounge.. so uhh compensation??
— PHULTON (@LesterTender) September 1, 2021
We spent so much money on supplies, can we get a discount code for a future bonnaroo?
— Chris (@CommonPractice) August 31, 2021
IM LITERALLY HERE I HAVE OVER 2 GRAND PUT INTO THIS WTF is anybody doing anything????
— (@meyer_baylee) August 31, 2021
Fuck that I'll donate 5,000 dollars to get mulch/wood chips/plywood/hay/gravel/whatever it takes. Thousands of people took time off work to travel across the country to come home to roo after very trying times...please reconsider opening gates Thursday. I will do anything to help
— EW! (@Graciously1ofem) September 1, 2021
Excuse me while I go cry.
— Suzanne Westbrook (@tnchic) August 31, 2021
Some called for an extra discount code for next year's show, with others claiming they paid thousands of dollars to cover travel and supply expenses, with one user even claiming "I am going to sue someone."
Others defended the festival organizers in the comments, praising their dedication to keeping festivalgoers safe and calling the naysayers "entitled."
2021 was set to be the 20th anniversary of Bonnaroo, which announced its lineup to fans' delights back in March.
It was one of the first major music festivals to announce a return run following the onset of the pandemic in 2020.
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