The party was supposed to be great this weekend in Palau-del-Vidre, a town near Perpignan, where the third edition of the Greenland Festival was held. An eco-responsible and inclusive event which ultimately will not take place. In question ? Cascading cancellations. In the last 48 hours, the rapper Ninho, the electro duo Trinix, the group Superbus or the revelation Zaho de Sagazan, awarded four Victoires de la Musique in February, have all reluctantly canceled their appearance. “ With regard to the contracts signed with the promoter, we regret to note that the commitments are not respected. We therefore cannot maintain these dates » indicates the Wart association, which manages the agenda of the interpreter of “The Symphony of Lightning”.
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Same story with L Productions, the producer of the musician Hoshi. “ The festival organizers do not respect their contractual obligations, and have remained silent for months in the face of reminders and requests for explanations. » is put forward in a press release, which deplores a “ late communication » : « We tried until the end to do everything to maintain this date and honor the presence of Hoshi who was delighted to meet the festival-goers again “. On his social networks, the artist, “ disgusted ”, goes even further. “ I really wanted to play. Frankly, the actions of the programmer are shameful for the public and the artists. We got scammed » she castigates.
“We look like scammers”
What really happened behind the scenes? In their publication announcing the pure and simple cancellation of the event, the organizers of the Greenland Festival mention a “ turbulence zone » and “ rules » having brought “ his share of disappointments “. “ The disappointment is such that it is still difficult for us to believe what we are experiencing. It’s time for us to take stock of what we’ve been through » they write. In reality, if the musicians canceled their participation in the event one after the other, it was because “ the Greenland festival found itself unable to pay the last third of the artists’ fees ” precise France 3. “ We wanted to put on a different festival, with heart. We believed that other people had hearts like us, and today we realize that this is not the reality » said David Alvarez, one of the festival organizers, during a press conference held Friday morning. “ We come across as scammers. But the fight to make culture accessible to all is we who lead it all year round » he laments.
“We had to comply with their conditions”
If it does not specify the reasons which led to the financial blockage of the artists’ remuneration, the festival blames certain scheduled singers who would not have respected the promised commitments. Rapper Ninho, followed by 5 million subscribers on Instagram, for example, did not promote the event on his social networks. “ We are young, we had to comply with their conditions » say the organizers, who are now focusing on “ reimbursement of festival-goers and service providers “. After this fiasco, could a new edition see the light of day in 2025?
