Afropunk Festival Cancels Its Atlanta Debut

Afropunk Festival in Atlanta has been canceled, according to festival organizers. 

The festival, which was scheduled to take place on Oct. 3 and 4 feature headliners like Thundercat and Tyler, the Creator, was canceled due to expected inclement weather in the city. Organizers announced the news on the festival’s website as well as via a press release.

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Afropunk Festival founder Matthew Morgan also included a statement in the release. 

“Safety is always the #1 concern for any of our festivals, nothing is more important,” Morgan wrote. “Over the course of the past 10 years of AFROPUNK’s existence, there has never been a serious injury on site and we plan to keep it that way with this tough decision to cancel the fest. We’re looking forward to AFROPUNK ATLANTA 2016.”

Afropunk Atlanta’s cancelation comes right at the heels of the nightmare that took place at the TomorrowWorld festival in Chattahoochee Hills, GA due to bad weather. TomorrowWorld festival-goers faced a number of safety issues that are currently under investigation by Chattahoochee Hills Mayor Tom Reed.

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This news also comes a day after headliner D’Angelo was forced to cancel his appearances at the festival — and a Bill Withers tribute at Carnegie Hall — because of “doctor’s orders.” According to a rep for the festival, D’Angelo’s cancelation had nothing to do with the fest calling it a day for 2015. Afropunk was already in the midst of securing his replacement when the weather forced the cancelation of the entire Atlanta event. 

The press release stated that “all of the approximately 10,000 plus ticket holders will automatically be refunded at point of purchase.” The festival venue’s capacity was approximately 15,000, which means about one-third of a possible 30,000 tickets for Afropunk Atlanta had been sold before the last-minute cancelation. 

Read the full statement about the cancelation of Afropunk Festival Atlanta below.

In the interest of patron, artist, and staff safety, we are reluctantly canceling AFROPUNK FEST ATL, set to take place this Saturday, October 3 and Sunday, October 4, amidst an ongoing and increasingly poor weather outlook for the greater Atlanta area. Site operations  and build  have been greatly impeded due to heavy rains throughout the week, with more inclement weather in the forecast for the next several days. These unfortunate and challenging circumstances are preventing us from presenting a world class experience that measures up to our reputation and providing a safe, welcoming environment for all involved.  All of the approximately 10,000 plus ticket holders  will automatically be  refunded at point of purchase. 

See below for an official statement from the founder of the festival Matthew Morgan: 

“Safety is always the #1 concern for any of our festivals, nothing is more important. Over the course of the past 10 years of AFROPUNK’s existence, there has never been a serious injury on site and we plan to keep it that way with this tough decision to cancel the fest. We’re looking forward to AFROPUNK ATLANTA 2016.”

This would have been the first time Afropunk Festival hit Atlanta. The festival, which is typically held in Brooklyn, expanded to Atlanta and Paris this year.