Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the music industry

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the music industry, mirroring its impacts across all arts sectors. Numerous music events, including music festivals, concert tours, and award shows, have been cancelled or postponed. While some musicians and composers were able to use the time to create new works, there were flow-on effects on the many supporting people who relied on performers for their income. Various album releases have been delayed as well. Pollstar estimated the total lost revenue for the live music industry in 2020 at more than $30 billion.

Music events Many concert tours, music festivals, and other events were canceled or postponed.

Impacted music festivals FestivalLocationDetailsSource 80/35 Music Festival Western Gateway Park, Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Afro Nation Puerto Rico Balneario de Carolina, Carolina, Puerto Rico 2020 edition cancelled. All Points East Victoria Park, London, England 2020 edition cancelled. Asunciónico Jockey Club, Asunción, Paraguay Postponed until late 2020. Bassinthegrass Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia Rescheduled to May 15, 2021. BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend Camperdown Park, Dundee, Scotland 2020 edition cancelled. Beale Street Music Festival Tom Lee Park, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to October 16–18, 2020. Beyond Wonderland NOS Events Center, San Bernardino, California, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Big Ears Festival Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Billboard LatinFest+ Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. 2020 event cancelled. Winners announced online on May 18, 2020. Bonnaroo Music Festival Great Stage Park, Manchester, Tennessee, U.S. Rescheduled to September 24–27, 2020.Boomtown Matterley Estate, Winchester, Hampshire, England2020 edition cancelled. Boston Calling Music Festival Harvard Athletic Complex, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. BottleRock Napa Valley Napa Valley Expo, Napa, California, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to October 2–4, 2020. The BPM Festival: Miami The Lawn at Island Gardens, Miami, Florida, U.S. Postponed until further notice. British Summer Time Hyde Park, London, England 2020 edition cancelled. BUKU Music + Art Project Festival Mardi Gras World, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled Bunbury Music Festival Sawyer Point Park & Yeatman's Cove, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Burger Boogaloo Mosswood Park, Oakland, California, U.S. Rescheduled to October 31 to November 1, 2020. Byron Bay Bluesfest Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia 2020 edition cancelled. C2C: Country to Country The O2 Arena, London, England and The SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland3Arena, Dublin, Ireland Postponed. Rescheduled to March 12–14, 2021. California Roots Music and Arts Festival Monterey County Fairgrounds, Monterey, California, U.S. Rescheduled to October 9–11, 2020. Calle Ocho Festival Little Havana, Miami, Florida, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Cape Town International Jazz Festival Cape Town, South Africa 2020 edition postponed for the foreseeable future. CMA Music Festival Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. CMC Rocks QLD Willowbank Raceway, Ipswich, Queensland, Australia 2020 edition cancelled. Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival Empire Polo Club, Indio, California, U.S. Initially rescheduled to October 9–11 and October 16–18, 2020, and later cancelled. Dark Mofo Hobart, Tasmania, Australia 2020 edition cancelled. Download Festival Australia Melbourne Showgrounds, Melbourne, Victoria and The Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2020 event cancelled. Download Festival Japan Chiba City and Osaka, Japan Postponed until further notice. Download Festival UK Donington Park, Derbyshire, England Postponed. Rescheduled to June 4–6, 2021. Eden Festival Raehills Meadows, Moffat, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland 2020 edition cancelled Dreamville Festival Dorothea Dix Park, Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to October 2–4, 2020. Epicenter Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Essence Music Festival Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Estéreo Picnic Festival Bogotá, Colombia Postponed. Rescheduled to December 4–6, 2020. Firefly Music Festival The Woodlands of Dover International Speedway, Dover, Delaware, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Flow Festival Suvilahti, Helsinki, Finland 2020 edition cancelled. Forecastle Festival Louisville Waterfront Park, Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Gathering of the Juggalos Nelson Kennedy Ledges State Park, Garrettsville, Ohio, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Glastonbury Festival Pilton, Somerset, England 2020 and 2021 edition cancelled. Governors Ball Music Festival Randalls Island, New York City, New York, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Hammersonic Festival Carnaval Beach Ancol, Jakarta, Indonesia Rescheduled to January 15–17, 2021. Hangout Music Festival Gulf Shores, Alabama, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Isle of Wight Festival Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight, England 2020 edition cancelled. Istanbul International Jazz Festival Istanbul, Turkey Postponed until further notice. Killin Music Festival Killin, Scotland Postponed to June 18–20, 2021. Knockengorroch Galloway, Scotland Postponed to September 10–13, 2020. Korea Times Music Festival Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, California, U.S. Postponed to October 23–25, 2020. La Linea – The London Latin Music Festival London, England Rescheduled to September 4–October 19, 2020. Life Is Beautiful Music & Art Festival Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Lightning in a Bottle Buena Vista Lake, California, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Virtual festival Lockn' Festival Oak Ridge Farm, Arrington, Virginia, U.S. Rescheduled to October 1–3, 2021. Lollapalooza Argentina Hipódromo de San Isidro, Buenos Aires, Argentina Rescheduled to November 27–29, 2020. Lollapalooza Brazil Autódromo de Interlagos, São Paulo, Brazil Rescheduled to December 4–6, 2020. Lollapalooza Chile O'Higgins Park, Santiago, Chile Rescheduled to November 27–29, 2020. Longitude Festival Marlay Park, Dublin, Ireland 2020 edition cancelled. Lowlands Biddinghuizen, Netherlands 2020 edition cancelled. Lost & Found Festival St. Paul's Bay, Malta 2020 edition cancelled March Madness Music Festival Centennial Olympic Park, Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Music festival coinciding with the 2020 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament cancelled following the tournament's cancellation. Mawazine Rabat, Morocco 2020 edition cancelled. Melbourne Jazz Festival Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 2020 edition cancelled. Meltdown Festival Southbank Centre, London, England 2020 edition cancelled. Mission Creek Festival Englert Theatre, Iowa City, Iowa, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Montreal Jazz Festival Montreal, Quebec, Canada 2020 edition cancelled. Montreux Jazz Festival Montreux, Switzerland 2020 edition cancelled. Mountain Jam Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel, New York, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Movement Electronic Music Festival Philip A. Hart Plaza, Detroit, Michigan, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to September 11–13, 2020. MusicNOW Festival Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. 2020 edition canceled. Newport Folk Festival Fort Adams State Park, Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. 2020 edition canceled. Newport Jazz Festival Fort Adams State Park, Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. 2020 edition canceled. Ojai Music Festival Ojai, California, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Oslo Sommertid Bjølsenfeltet, Oslo, Norway 2020 edition cancelled. Ottawa Jazz Festival Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 2020 edition cancelled. Pal Norte Fundidora Park, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico 2020 edition cancelled. Parklife Festival Heaton Park, Manchester, England 2020 edition cancelled. Primavera Sound Barcelona Parc del Fòrum, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain 2020 edition cancelled. Primavera Sound Porto Parque da Cidade, Porto, Portugal 2020 edition cancelled. Pulp Summer Slam Mall of Asia Arena, Bay City, Pasay, Philippines 2020 edition cancelled. Rakrakan Festival CCP Open Grounds, Pasay, Philippines Originally rescheduled to April 25, 2020, and then postponed until further notice. Rock am Ring Nürburgring, Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany 2020 edition cancelled. Rock im Park Zeppelinfeld, Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany 2020 edition cancelled. Rock in Rio Bela Vista Park, Lisbon, Portugal Rescheduled to June 19–20 and June 26–27, 2021 Rock the Ocean's Tortuga Music Festival Fort Lauderdale Beach Park, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S. Rescheduled to October 2–4, 2020 Rock Werchter Festivalpark, Werchter, Belgium 2020 edition cancelled. Roskilde Festival Roskilde, Denmark 2020 edition cancelled. Shambhala Salmo, British Columbia, Canada 2020 edition cancelled. Snowbombing Mayrhofen, Tyrol, Austria 2020 edition cancelled. Sónar Hong Kong Hong Kong Science Park, Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong Postponed until further notice. South by Southwest Austin, Texas, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Splendour in the Grass North Byron Parklands, Yelgun, New South Wales, Australia Rescheduled to October 23–25, 2020. Stagecoach Festival Empire Polo Club, Indio, California, U.S. Initially rescheduled to October 23–25, 2020, and later cancelled. Summerfest Henry Maier Festival Park, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. Rescheduled to September 3–5, 10–12, and 17–19, 2020, then cancelled. SunFest West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Tallinn Music Week Tallinn, Estonia Rescheduled to August 2020. Texas Music Revolution Amphitheater at Oak Point Park, Plano, Texas, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to July 31 and August 1, 2020. Tomorrowland Boom, Antwerp, Belgium 2020 edition cancelled. Tomorrowland Winter Alpe d'Huez, France 2020 edition cancelled. Towersey Festival Thame, Oxfordshire, England 2020 edition cancelled. Treefort Music Fest Boise, Idaho, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to September 23–27, 2020. Ultra Music Festival Bayfront Park, Miami, Florida, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Ultra Abu Dhabi Du Arena, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 2020 edition cancelled. Wacken Open Air Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany 2020 edition cancelled. Wanderland Music and Arts Festival Filinvest City Event Grounds, Muntinlupa, Philippines Postponed until further notice. Waterfront Blues Festival Tom McCall Waterfront Park, Portland, Oregon, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. Welcome to Rockville Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. WOMAD Charlton Park Charlton Park, Malmesbury, Wiltshire, England 2020 edition cancelled. WOO HAH! Safaripark Beekse Bergen, Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands Rescheduled to July 9–11, 2021.

Impacted music conferences NameLocation DetailsSource ASCAP Experience InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown, Los Angeles, California, U.S. 2020 edition cancelled. FastForward Studios 301, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2020 edition cancelled. International Music Summit Ibiza, Balearic Islands, Spain Postponed until further notice. Virtual version of the event will take place. Midem Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, Cannes, France 2020 edition moved online. Music Biz 2020 JW Marriott Nashville, Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. Postponed. Rescheduled to August 16–19, 2020. Winter Music Conference Miami, Florida, U.S. Postponed until further notice.

Impacted concert performances