BeachLife Festival Cut Short Sunday Night Due To High Winds

BeachLife Festival in Redondo Beach near Los Angeles was cut short Sunday night, with organizers citing high winds and asking fans for patience as it determines next steps.

“It is with great sadness that we must cancel our programming at BeachLife this Sunday evening due to a serious wind event that put the general public at risk,” the announcement stated at about 7 p.m. 

ZZ Top was performing a 4:30 p.m. slot on the three-day festival’s second main stage, closest to the water, during which frontman Billy Gibbons jokingly asked “can someone turn down the fan?” 

Speaker line arrays and overhead lights were swaying with the wind throughout the set, although the band seemed mostly unaffected other than playing through general gusty conditions on stage to a large crowd.

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With 5 minutes left on the band’s scheduled hour-long set, Gibbons somewhat abruptly notified the audience that “they said it’s getting a little crazy up here,” before playing the opening riff to “La Grange” and quickly leaving the stage along with his bandmates.

Fans were informed via loudspeaker to leave the festival site for one hour to allow time for the weather to improve. Fans largely left calmly and quietly, with many electing to call it a day as winds along the waterfront showed no signs of slowing. Many fans milled about or walked the festival grounds as no immediate danger appeared present, making for a very orderly evacuation period.

 “While we take extraordinary measures to keep our fans, staff and artists safe, and while absolutely none of our engineered structures or systems failed, winds quickly reached very dangerous speeds and we put safety first,” the statement continued. “Alongside the Redondo Beach Police and Fire Department Chiefs, our Ownership made a collective decision that to continue would be unsafe and put people’s lives at risk. Reopening was not possible.”

The festival’s remaining programming included Fleet Foxes, Trey Anastasio and headliner My Morning Jacket. With an early curfew on Sunday meaning MMJ was scheduled to play at 7:50, the festival had a brief window to wait out weather, ensure conditions were secure and allow reentry in time for a full performance.

“In our Community, BeachLife stays committed above all to put the safety of our patrons, artists, vendors, and fans first. In the coming days, we will be unwinding the collateral consequences of this decision, and we ask for your support and patience while we do so,” the statement concludes. “Please go to the main entrance if you have items left in the festival and we will escort you in. Thank you for your understanding and we’ll see you soon.”

The festival’s Friday and Saturday experienced calmer weather seemingly without incident, with headline sets from Sting, Incubus and full days of programming. Sunday’s earlier sets also went without incident, including Sugar Ray, Margo Price, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, and Courtney Barnett.

Social media response was mixed between those supportive of safety-first protocol and others bemoaning that weather had calmed by 8 p.m., with many fans saying they had bought tickets to see a specific late-Sunday set or made travel plans.

Pollstar has reached out for additional comment on the decision to cancel and if any refunds will be made available.