Coachella Organizers’ Ocean Way Festival Canceled Due to Hurricane Marie

The inaugural Ocean Way Festival has been canceled due to beach erosion from Hurricane Marie. The Santa Monica festival from Coachella organizer Goldenvoice had been due to debut on the last weekend of September, headlined by the Killers and Olivia Dean. But the City of Santa Monica pulled the plug two weeks in advance, organizers said, after “storm surf and runoff” damaged areas including the earmarked stretch between Santa Monica Pier and Bay Street. Goldenvoice is planning to launch Ocean Way Festival next year instead, according to the statement.

Dan Hall, a Santa Monica City Council member, told The Los Angeles Times, “With Hurricane Marie also causing sinkholes in Malibu and triggering home evacuations in Long Beach due to rising surf, the rapid erosion of the beach near the Sandbox event space over the past few days is deeply concerning.” The hurricane is associated with the devastating Super El Niño weather pattern, the scale of which results from avoidable global heating caused by humans.

Jack White, Khruangbin, Alvvays, and Sublime were also among Ocean Way’s slated performers.

Jazz Monroe is a music and culture writer based in London. His work also appears in The Guardian, The Independent, and elsewhere. ... Read More