Live Nation to Require COVID-19 Vaccinations or Negative Tests at All Events

The new policy goes into effect October 4. Employees must also be fully vaccinated by that date.

August 15, 2021

Bonnaroo crowd — Crowd at 2017 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival—a Live Nation event (Photo by Douglas Mason/Getty Images).

Live Nation has updated its policy regarding concert and festival attendance amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as Rolling Stone points out. The company will now require all artists, crew members, and attendees to show proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test at their venues and festivals starting October 4. All Live Nation employees must also be vaccinated by October 4 to attend any of the company’s venues or events, or visit any of its offices. The company clarified that the mandate will be enforced where permitted by law. Read the full story here.

“Vaccines are going to be your ticket back to shows,” Live Nation president and CEO Michael Rapino said in a statement to Rolling Stone. “As of October 4th we will be following the model we developed for Lollapalooza and requiring this for artists, fans and employees at Live Nation venues and festivals everywhere possible in the US.” Pitchfork has reached out to Live Nation representatives for more information.

Live Nation had previously revealed a policy that allowed artists to require audience vaccinations. The updated policy follows an announcement that Lollapalooza 2021 was not a super-spreader event. Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, made the announcement last week, stating that Chicago has tracked 203 total COVID-19 cases identified with Lollapalooza attendance, and that, as of August 11, no hospitalizations or deaths stemming from attendance have been reported. An estimated 385,000 people attended the event.

Concert promoter AEG recently announced a mandate requiring proof of full vaccination for concert attendees and venue staff members for all of its shows moving forward, which goes into effect October 1. The company will also be implementing a vaccine or negative COVID-19 test policy in states where it is legal, leading up to the October 1 date.

Individual artists have come forward in the past few weeks stating their own vaccine and test requirements for tours and concerts, including Bleachers, Jason Isbell, Japanese Breakfast, and more.

Read “What Does a Music Festival During a Pandemic Look Like? We’re About to Find Out” over on the Pitch.