Fans attending the Governors Ball festival in New York over the weekend were thrown into scheduling chaos after organizers delayed and canceled several sets due to weather.
On Saturday, the festival released a statement saying: “Due to predicted weather, doors will be delayed until 4:30pm. Please delay your arrival and plan accordingly. Stay tuned for the updated schedule!”
That delay pushed back the gate opening time four and a half hours, immediately affecting the performances as a result. Saturday headliner Olivia Rodrigo had her set pushed back an hour, one of many time slots that were altered due to the situation. Lexa Gates, Yaya Bey and The Backfires were among the artists to have their sets entirely canceled.
The last-minute changes left many attendees scrambling to catch their favorite acts. Unsurprisingly, many fans took to social media to express their frustrations.
Fans Slam Governors Ball
“[Governors Ball] was handled DISGUSTINGLY,” wrote one attendee on Twitter. “We traveled from over 2hrs away, sat here since 12p in the car bc we found out too late, and now we’re gonna ISS the only reason we bought tix for today bc staff can’t handle getting everyone in within a timely fashion. Unacceptable.”
Another fan called out organizers for a perceived lack of planning. “Y’all said rain [or] shine, so tf why wasn’t y’all prepared? Be fucking serious. That shit to go in was HORRIBLE!”
“These music festivals have been dropping the ball REAL BAD,” chimed in another fan. “Those tickets are NOT CHEAP.”
“Almost every year it rains during Governors Ball,” noted user @bathbinch. “Why don’t they call it a day or move it deeper into summer??”
While the scheduling chaos put a damper on the weekend, it didn’t ruin everything about Governors Ball. Rodrigo delivered a captivating headlining set, which included a surprise guest appearance by the Talking Heads’ David Byrne. Hozier, Tyler the Creator, Glass Animals, Benson Boone, Role Model and Mt. Joy were among the other standout performances.
