On the heels of Bonnaroo’s mid-festival cancelation due to weather and the flooded site conditions it created, the fallout continues to be a hot debate on social media.
Bonnaroo posted on its official Instagram account thanking Bonnaroovians and the Bonnaroo team.
“Last weekend did not go according to plan but together we got through it,” the post read. “Know that we are listening and reading every single comment. Bonnaroo is not a weekend on a farm in Tennessee — it’s all of you. We love you.”
Two Bonnaroovians, Monet Dunham, left, and Clayton Hogins, both of Virginia Beach, Va., wait in the rain for the festival to resume during the second day of Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival at The Farm in Manchester, Tenn., Friday, June 13, 2025. It was later announced the festival would be canceled for the remaining two days due to the heavy rains.
But many comments to that post were less than favorable, citing issues ranging from the refund policy, to drainage issues at the festival site to ultimately — trust.
One post read: “Together we got through it?? There was zero togetherness between Roo staff and attendees. WE did that s***. WE pushed cars out of the mud. WE took care of each other. WE kept the Roo spirit alive in Nashville. Y’all did absolutely f***ing NOTHING to help us after the announcement.”
Petition asks Live Nation for full refunds for Bonnaroo
A petition has been started at change.org by Kaitlyn Ziegler, calling on Live Nation, the festival’s promoter, to issue 100% refunds for the cancelation instead of the 75% refunds that were promised.
“This year’s Bonnaroo music festival, owned and managed by Live Nation, was nothing short of disappointing for thousands of attendees,” the petition reads. “Many festival-goers faced unexpected challenges, including extreme weather conditions, poor organization, and subpar facilities. These issues rendered the festival experience exhausting and unrewarding, contrary to what was promised when tickets were purchased.”
Refunds: When will Bonnaroo refunds be issued? How much can attendees expect after cancellation
More than 4,000 people had signed the petition by the afternoon of Tuesday, June 17.
One person named Brian commented on the petition saying the festival needed to be canceled and he was glad they did, but a 75% refund is “a laugh in the face” at the hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in food, supplies, and traveling expenses festival-goers spent.
“I understand that throwing a festival this massive requires a great amount of logistics to function properly, and I also understand that cost a lot of money for Live Nation too,” Brian’s post read. “However, Live Nation is a large and powerful company. They have the capability of organizing a proper response protocol to storms, yet they choose not to do so. We have had over two decades of magic on the farm. Let’s not ruin the community we’ve built by being greedy.”
The Tennessean reached out to Bonnaroo’s organizers and will update this story if they return our requests for comments.
Melonee Hurt covers music and music business at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK — Tennessee. Reach Melonee at mhurt@tennessean.com or on Instagram at @MelHurtWrites.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Bonnaroo cancellation prompts backlash, petition for 100% refunds
