Pitchfork Music Festival, which started in 2011, has officially been canceled. The decision was made on the heels of the folding of the Pitchfork team into GQ by Conde Nast, which acquired Pitchfork in 2015. The festival announced the cancelation of the festival on November 12, 2024:
Fans reacted to the festival's cancelation immediately, with many expressing their disappointment at the turn of events, as exemplified by the responses quoted below:
"damn this is sad. would’ve been the 20th year too." one fan ocommented.
"This is terrible.Another great thing leaving Chicago…" another fan commented.
"Y’all missed a huge opportunity to do just one more in Chicago and make it a huge 20-year anniversary party. But do you." one netizen stated.
"F**k Condé Nast. There was no reason to do this, we’ve supported this festival year after year and this is what we get. “Evolving festival landscape” my a**," another netizen reacted.
"Whhhhooooaaaa. Riot fest last year. Pitchfork....what's going on," one questioned.
More on Pitchfork Music Festival cancelation
The lengthy statement accompanying the announcement of the festival's cancelation briefly elaborates on the reasons behind the cancelation and the festival's history. Parts of the statement on the cancelation of Pitchfork Music Festival are quoted below:
"To our Chicago festival community: As the music festival landscape continues to evolve rapidly, we have made the difficult decision not to host Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago in 2025. This decision was not made lightly."
The statement on the cancelation of the Pitchfork Music Festival continues:
"For 19 years, Pitchfork Music Festival has been a celebration of music, art and community - a space where memories were made, voices amplified and the shared love of music brought us all together. The Festival, while aligned with the taste of Pitchfork editorial team, has always been a collaborative effort, taking on a life of its own as a vital pillar-"
The statement goes on:
"-of the Chicago arts scene. We are deeply grateful to the City of Chicago for being our Festival's home for nearly two decades, to the artists who graced our stages with unforgetable performances, and to the fans who brought unmatched energy year after year."
The statement goes on to thank the festival team and the festival's founder, Mike Reed, before signing off with the statement that Pitchfork will host other events in 2025:
"Pitchfork will continue to produce events in 2025 and beyond. We look forward to continuing to create spaces where music, culture, and community intersect in uplifting ways—and we hope to see you there."
Pitchfork is being folded into GQ by Conde Nast
As mentioned, Pitchfork is being folded into GQ Magazine by Conde Nast. Anna Wintour made the announcement in a memo to the company in January 2024.
Pitchfork's folding into GQ is among the many cost-cutting measures Conde Nast took in 2024. Following the announcement, several staff members from the Pitchfork team were laid off.
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Pitchfork was founded by Ryan Schreiber in 1996 as an online alternative music magazine. The platform became known for publishing album and tour reviews of even the most obscure artists and investigative journalism pieces before it was folded into Conde Nast.
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