Bonnaroo festival has confirmed it will return in 2026, after its 2025 edition was unexpectedly cancelled due to “record-setting rainfall”.
Last month, the Manchester, Tennessee festival was abruptly cancelled, with organisers saying an updated weather forecast was showing unsustainable conditions for on-site campers, with heavy thunderstorms occurring throughout the area.
The festival’s first day went smoothly, but the decision to cancel the remainder of the event was made on Friday night in light of the extreme weather.
Bonnaroo kicked off Thursday June 12 with performances from Luke Combs, Rebecca Black and more. Friday night’s headliners were scheduled to be Tyler, The Creator, John Summit and Glass Animals, while Saturday’s line-up was intended to be led by Olivia Rodrigo, Avril Lavigne and Justice.
Sunday, meanwhile, would have wrapped up with Hozier, Vampire Weekend and Queens of the Stone Age.
Now, in a new statement, organisers have confirmed that the festival will come back in 2026. Bonnaroo will return to the same location on the same weekend next year — June 11-14 at the Farm in Manchester.
In the post, they explained that this year’s weather was a freak occurrence: “Weather experts have confirmed that we saw record-setting rainfall this spring and early summer, making what we experienced extremely uncommon. All things considered, our traditional June time frame remains the most optimal time of year for Bonnaroo.”
However, some changes will be made. The festival will no longer use the campground that was the most flooded, and the team is also planning to spend more money improving the festival’s campgrounds and other areas.
They will also be changing some of the site and stage planning, and have called this a “multi-million-dollar multi-year plan”.
Following the cancellation of the 2025 event, it later emerged they had planned to issue 75 per cent refunds (per The Hollywood Reporter), and appeared to address the significant backlash the proposed refunds caused in an Instagram post shared Friday (June 20).
Writing that they were “still listening and actively discussing plans to improve The Farm,” they shared that they were “updating the refund to 100%, rather than the 75% originally offered.”
The statement appeared to suggest the festival would be taking some time off after several turbulent years, with this year’s edition marking the third time in five years Bonnaroo has been cancelled.
“At this time, we will not be announcing future dates,” the post continued. “When plans for the future take shape, you all will be the first to know.”
Elsewhere in the statement, the organisers thanked fans for bearing with them. “This cancellation broke our hearts beyond measure,” they said, “but we knew it had to happen for your safety.”
Just days before the festival was cancelled, news emerged that Jonathan Mayers, co-founder of events company Superfly Entertainment and co-creator of Bonnaroo and Outside Lands, had died.
