Calvin Harris, Armin Van Buuren, Lil Pump and Alison Wonderland are among the big names confirmed for FestivalX, a new touring festival set to splash in the Australian summer.
The first batch of 28 acts, announced Wednesday, includes Anna Lunoe, Murda Beatz and Steve Aoki for a debut run that will visit the three main cities on the eastern seaboard.
Hardware and Onelove, the creators of the Stereosonic brand which, at its peak, could shift more than a quarter million tickets, have joined forces with Live Nation to launch FestivalX, which gets the go-ahead after a false start in 2018.
Originally planned to visit four cities across Australia and New Zealand in late 2018 with a bill of hip-hop, pop, EDM and electronica performers, those shows were ultimately scrapped due to “unforeseen last-minute changes in artist availability,” according to a joint statement issued at the time.
With those issues now well behind it, FestivalX will visit Brisbane’s RNA Showgrounds on Nov. 29, Sydney Showgrounds on Nov. 30 and wrap up Dec. 1 at Melbourne Showgrounds.
“As they say, good things come to those who wait,” comments Richie McNeill, founder of Hardware Corp (Piknic Electronik, Babylon).
Frank Cotela, founder of Onelove, adds, “we hope to create an event that showcases entertainment on the scale we’re known internationally for, with massive artists, epic event production and a focus firmly on fun.”
With FestivalX, Live Nation adds its first dance-and-hip-hop leaning brand to an expanding portfolio of open-air events, which includes the Download Festival, a rock and metal one-day show that expanded this year into a two-city trek, and the popular mid-winter event Splendour in the Grass, which took place last weekend in Byron Bay.
FestivalX fills a void on the calendar left vacant by Stereosonic, which began in Melbourne in 2007 and expanded to a five-city trek, visiting Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, before it abruptly disappeared. For its 2013 run, Stereosonic sold more than 280,000 tickets sold across its five shows.
Tickets for FestivalX go on sale Aug. 1 with prices starting from A$154.95 ($108) in Brisbane and A$159.95 ($111) in Sydney and Melbourne. Optus Perks presales begin July 29.
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