Area music lovers long awaiting the return of the festival experience will have to wait at least until 2022. For the second year in a row, the Broccoli City Music Festival has been canceled due to COVID-19 concerns.
Organizers for Broccoli City, which bills itself as the largest U.S. festival for young people of color, made the announcement Wednesday morning on Twitter:
At the heart of Broccoli City is the belief that our people deserve the best of everything — including safe spaces to gather in celebration of our culture. In that spirit, we have decided to cancel the Broccoli City Festival 2021 this Oct. to reduce the likelihood of exposure to COVID-19 and do our part to slow the spread in the communities of color we serve.”
The festival, which Rodney Rikai and Little Bacon Bear had planned to host Oct. 2 at the RFK Stadium grounds, was set to headline artists such as Lil Baby, Snoh Aalegra, Moneybagg Yo, and feature dozens of other rising stars. The annual event also featured a pop-up marketplace, a DJ tent and selfie art.
Organizers say tickets for this year’s event will be automatically refunded within 14 business days. If you haven’t received a refund within 30 days, email the vendor: order-support@frontgatetickets.com.
All tickets will be automatically refunded within 30 business days. We will also continue to keep you informed and uplifted as we all battle through this pandemic together. In the meantime, please continue to take COVID-19 seriously. pic.twitter.com/ognjZgO3HM
— Broccoli City (@BroccoliCity) September 15, 2021
The event was founded by longtime friends Brandon McEachern and Marcus Allen as a nod to their hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina.
Past events have provided a launchpad for hip-hop and R&B titans such as Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Cardi B, Lil Wayne, Erykah Badu, Nipsey Hussle and Anderson .Paak.
Learn more about the Broccoli City Festival and its history from WTOP’s Jason Fraley.
WTOP’s Jason Fraley contributed to this story.
