Neil Young dumps Glastonbury alleging 'BBC control'
LONDON — Folk legend Neil Young has pulled out of this year's Glastonbury music festival, alleging it has fallen under "the corporate control" of its partner the BBC.
The 79-year-old musician, who was once one of the line-up of the supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, said he had been "looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all-time favourite outdoor gigs".
But he added that the "BBC... wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in" at the festival held in late June in southwest England.
"It seems Glastonbury is under corporate control," the US-Canadian singer and songwriter claimed in a statement on his website.
"We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour, because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be."
Neither the festival organisers nor the BBC replied to AFP requests for comment on Young's withdrawal.
The full official line-up for the world-famous festival has not been announced yet.
But rumours had swirled that Young and his group The Chrome Hearts would be taking to the stage at the festival's home at Worthy Farm, in the county Somerset.
Young, who last played Glastonbury in 2009, did not give specific details of what the BBC's demands had been.
In 2009, fans accused the BBC of not broadcasting the whole of his set.
The broadcaster said at the time that it had spent "months" negotiating with Young's team what they could screen of his show.
"Neil's management agreed to let TV and radio broadcast five songs as they watched and listened to his performance. They believe in the live event and retaining its mystery and that of their artist," the BBC said then.
Tickets for this year's festival sold out within 35 minutes when they went on sale in November, with standard tickets priced at £373.50 ($471.50).
The row comes as Glastonbury reported profits more than doubled last year.
The festival brought in £5.9 million in pre-tax profit for the year to March 2024, up from £2.9 million the year before, according to accounts filed with Companies House.
This year's event will see raspy-voiced British rock star Rod Stewart play the coveted legends slot, more than two decades after he headlined the festival.
Glastonbury attracted more than 200,000 fans in 2024, hosting 3,000 performances across some 80 stages. Many of the gigs were broadcast by the BBC, which has partnered with the festival since 1997.
Glasto, as the festival is popularly known, was inspired by Britain's 1960s counterculture and hippie movements, with its first iteration as the Pilton Festival in 1970.
Glam rockers T. Rex were the first headliners. Since then, it has attracted cult status and big names, from David Bowie and Paul McCartney to Stormzy and Elton John, who played his final UK gig there in 2023.