Bonnaroo Music Festival to pause for 2027
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The Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, held annually in Manchester, Tennessee, since 2002, will not take place in 2027. Organisers announced on social media that the event is taking a "much-needed year off," describing it as a difficult decision that they believe will ultimately strengthen the festival's future. The news ends weeks of speculation among fans after promoters, who normally announce dates well in advance, went quiet following this year's event.
The hiatus follows a turbulent recent history for the festival, which has faced repeated weather-related disruptions, including a Covid-related cancellation in 2020, a hurricane-forced cancellation in 2021, and a rain-shortened event in 2025. Despite millions spent on infrastructure improvements such as new drainage, roadways and grass ahead of the 2026 festival, a storm on the final day still forced an evacuation and cancelled some performances. Producer C3 Presents, owned by Live Nation, had surveyed fans afterwards about potentially moving the festival to a later date, and the pause is expected to allow organisers to reassess the event's future format and timing.
- Bonnaroo festival will skip 2027, organisers confirm
- Repeated weather disruptions have plagued recent editions
- Producers surveyed fans about possibly rescheduling the festival's timing
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Bonnaroo is a large outdoor music and arts festival that has run every summer since 2002 in Manchester, Tennessee, drawing tens of thousands of fans and big-name performers over several days. It is now run by C3 Presents, a promoter owned by Live Nation, the world's largest concert and ticketing company.
In recent years the festival has been repeatedly hit by extreme weather, forcing cancellations or curtailed events on several occasions, including issues linked to the Covid-19 pandemic, a hurricane, and heavy rain. Organisers had invested significantly in site improvements such as drainage and roads to try to prevent further disruption, but weather problems have continued to affect the event.
The festival matters both as a fixture of the US summer touring calendar for musicians and fans, and as a business run by a major entertainment company, so decisions about its future have knock-on effects for artists, local businesses in Tennessee, and the wider live-music industry.
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Originally published by Rolling Stone as “Bonnaroo Taking ‘Much-Needed Year Off’ in 2027”.