In a tribute to the legendary Woodstock concert that took place 50 years ago, a “Woodstock 50” concert will take place this year. On Tuesday (Mar. 19), many of the performers scheduled for the big event were revealed. They’ll include pop star Miley Cyrus, hip-hop artist Jay-Z, and rock band The Killers.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Woodstock 50 Music and Artist Fair announced all of the performers included in the official lineup on Tuesday. In addition to the artists mentioned there’s also Akon, Chance the Rapper, the Black Keys, Common, Gretta Van Fleet, Janelle Monae, Imagine Dragons, Cage the Elephant, Run the Jewels, Halsey, and Vince Staples.
Some of the artists who performed at the original Woodstock concert back in August 1969 will also take the stage for the 2019 edition. They’ll include Santana, John Fogerty, David Crosby, and Canned Heat. The new Grateful Dead band, Dead and Company featuring John Mayer, will also be a part of the event. The Grateful Dead performed at the original concert as well.
The original concert event was held on a dairy farm located in the Catskill Mountains in New York back in 1969. That major event had over 400,000 people in the audience to enjoy a variety of musical artists. It was considered a huge moment in terms of musical history and documented in the Academy Award-winning 1970 film aptly titled, “Woodstock.”
A 40th anniversary Woodstock event took place in 2009. It featured headliners such as Canned Heat, Ten Years After, Mountain, and Jefferson Starship. The event took place on August 15, 2009 at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts which is near the original Woodstock site. There were also 40th anniversary events or tribute concerts held in 2009 in Hawkhurst, Kent, United Kingdom and in Woodstock, Illinois.
Michael Lang was a co-founder of the original music festival and now the producer of Woodstock 50. He said with the return of the event, “Our hope is that today, just as in 1969, music will be the constant that can inspire positive change.”
The Woodstock 50 concert is scheduled to take place from Aug. 16 through 18 in Watkins Glen, New York. Customers can purchase tickets for the 50th anniversary concert starting on April 22.
