Bluesfest will feature an all-Australian lineup next year, with the festival confirming its planned international guests (including Patti Smith and Bon Iver) will not be appearing amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
“With Australia’s international border restrictions in place, we must officially announce that the international artists previously included on our 2021 lineup will not appear at Bluesfest next Easter,” wrote festival organisers in a statement yesterday (November 25).
“In our first artist announcement in July we advised, should international artists not be able to perform at the Bluesfest 2021 event, we will present you with the finest all-Aussie lineup, and we believe we have delivered.”
In light of the news, Bon Iver have also cancelled their planned 2021 Australian and New Zealand tour. “We look forward to safer days ahead when we can play for you,” the band wrote in a statement on Twitter.
Bluesfest 2021 is set to take place at its usual home of Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm in Byron Bay next year between the 1st-5th April, with a lineup that includes the likes of Jimmy Barnes, Tash Sultana, Ocean Alley, The Teskey Brothers and many more.
Presented in a COVID-safe format, it will see Bluesfest return after the pandemic forced organisers to pull the plug on this year’s event back in March.
In yesterday’s statement, organisers said they were rapidly approaching 70% sold-out of what they believe their permitted capacity will be for next year’s event.
