Danny Wimmer Presents has canceled all spring festivals the band was scheduled to headline.
Metallica is rescheduling their April tour dates and will no longer appear at the Danny Wimmer Presents spring festivals, due to the spreading coronavirus, it was announced Monday (March 23).
The iconic rock band had been scheduled to perform at DWP’s Epicenter May 1-3 in North Carolina, Welcome to Rockville May 8-10 in Florida and Sonic Temple May 15-17 in Ohio.
“As many of you know, in our nearly forty years of touring, we’ve had a few mishaps along the way; broken bones, trashed appendixes, a pyro mishap, backs thrown out, crazy weather, food poisoning (beware of the oysters!) and even one way next-level anxiety attack! None of it has ever stopped us, but this is obviously a very different time and leaving the house now literally means taking your life in your hands,” the band said in a release. “Unfortunately, in these surreal times that means we have to stay away from each other for the foreseeable future before we can start thinking about ‘Tallica family reunions around the world.”
Metallica was scheduled to perform in Chile, Argentina and Brazil throughout the month of April, but has moved the six-date trek to December. Tour support Greta Van Fleet has committed to attending the December dates once they are rescheduled, though the venues may change.
For fans in the United States, Metallica apologized for being unable to play the DWP festivals due to their cancellation, but said that they are still scheduled to play Louder Than Life in Louisville, which has now added a fourth day to the event and will run Sept. 17-20. Fans who bought tickets to the festival will have access to the newly added dates.
“We are crushed to say that Epicenter, Welcome To Rockville and Sonic Temple are being canceled due to the governmental restrictions on mass gatherings,” DWP said about the festival cancellations in a release. “We respect these directives and recognize they are in the best interest of the greater good, as well as the health and safety of our fans, musicians, partners, and staff. Before accepting this fate, we worked really hard to try to reschedule the festivals. Unfortunately, scheduling conflicts, venue availabilities and a number of other factors out of our control made postponing impossible. Make no mistake, each of these festivals will return in May 2021 bigger and stronger than ever!”
Ticketholders for the three cancelled festivals can seek a full refund from DWP, apply the ticket to the festival’s 2021 edition or exchange it for a pass to another DWP festival still scheduled to take place this year, including Louder Than Life, Bourbon & Beyond, Hometown Rising and Aftershock.
“We have also arranged for many of the bands from Sonic, Epicenter and Rockville to play at Louder Than Life and will be announcing that as soon as we feel appropriate,” DWP added. “Because we were not able to reschedule the Spring festivals, we want Louder Than Life to be an inclusive celebration of all of those festivals. It’s not a perfect solution, but these are imperfect times. It is our sincere hope that we are all able to heal together with massive celebrations this Fall.”
Due to uncertainty surrounding the containment of coronavirus, for the time being, DWP said it will hold off on announcing lineups or putting passes on sale for its remaining festivals.
