Mad Decent Block Party Festival At Gillette Stadium Called Off

The fest, which was being put on by Diplo with the help of Synergy Global Entertainment, was scheduled to place at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. Organizers broke the news yesterday on social media, stating that due to circumstances beyond their control, “putting this event on in the way that it was envisioned has become impossible.” 

Refunds are being promised on or before July 12, though it may take 10 days to be reflected on attendees’ bank or credit card statements. Other partners on the event include Rockstar Energy, Monaco Cocktail, Ciroq, Bulleit and others.

A source with knowledge of the matter told Pollstar that sales for the fest were relatively slow but could likely have picked up by showtime, especially with a bill topped by Eilish.  

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”en”><p lang=”und” dir=”ltr”><a href=”https://t.co/ckcMI8zT6D”>pic.twitter.com/ckcMI8zT6D</a></p>&mdash; Mad Decent Block Party Festival (@mdbpfest) <a href=”https://twitter.com/mdbpfest/status/1148942589078278144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>July 10, 2019</a></blockquote>

Gillette Stadium, with its proximity to Boston and Providence, has hosted a number of major shows including the Rolling Stones (who performed there on July 7 grossing $11.67 million, according to Pollstar Boxoffice data), Ed Sheeran, U2 and Kenny Chesney (who has made the venue a second home with regular performances).

SGE’s Marueen Valker-Barlow recently told Pollstar that things like “the world’s largest bounce house”  go-karts, and paintball at the event provide an important flavor for these artist-branded events.

Mad Decent Block Party India was also canceled in 2017, citing similar reasons of being “not able to host the … Party in the exact style with which we envisioned.” 

Synergy Global Entertainment is also putting on the Real Street festival at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., Aug. 10-11, though headliner A$AP Rocky is currently incarcerated in Sweden and may still be in detention at the time of the event. 

SGE founder and owner John Reese was featured in Pollstar’s inaugural Impact 50 list, saying: “We’ve found our niche in these immersive, multi-attraction, multi-artist experiences to give fans of whatever genre or event we’re doing a chance to get away from their daily lives and have a full day.”