News

All the artists who have turned down Glastonbury – from rock icons to revolutionary musicians


A compilation image of Brian May, Stevie Nicks, and Nadine Shah in front of the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival

These artists won’t be playing the Pyramid Stage any time soon (Picture: REX)

Thousands of music fans will be getting their tents and wellies together for a weekend of live music at Glastonbury Festival.

Worthy Farm will play host to hundreds of acts, including Dua Lipa, Sza and Coldplay, with Shania Twain in the coveted legends slot.

But many have dubbed this year’s line-up ‘underwhelming’, with some stars coming out to say they even turned down a slot at the event.

Pop star Nadine Shah announced she had been approached to perform, but would not be among this year’s Glastonbury line-up because the fee was too low.

But she’s not the only one, with many famous artists and groups declining to appear at the Worthy Farm event – some vowing never to play full stop.

Lana Del Rey once admitted to repeatedly turning down a slot at the festival before eventually delighting fans with an appearance last year, and Taylor Swift reportedly couldn’t make a set work back in 2022.

Here are some of the top artists who have said ‘no’ to a coveted Glastonbury slot.

Duran Duran

Duran Duran are Invisible on the Glastonbury lineup (Picture: Katja Ogrin/Redferns)

Duran Duran are not Hungry Like The Wolf to play Glastonbury Festival.

Singer Simon Le Bon told The Telegraph in 2023 that the band has been approached to perform, but has always turned it down ‘on principle.’

‘3pm in the Disco Tent isn’t really where we see ourselves. A long time ago I vowed I would never set foot in Glastonbury unless it was on the Pyramid Stage at a decent hour of the night,’ he said.

‘I’ve been asked to camp, to glamp and invited to fly in and out by helicopter. I’ve always refused on principle.’

Queen

Badgers are preventing Queen from performing. Yes, really. (Picture: Miikka Skaffari/Getty Images)

Queen’s live show has headline slot written all over it, but the band has so far refused to play thanks to one thing – badgers.

Guitarist Brian May, a staunch advocate for British wildlife and the conservation of badgers, has famously repeatedly turned down Glastonbury due to founder Michael Eavis’ pro-badger cull stance.

In 2019, May told Zoe Ball on her BBC Radio 2 show that Eavis has ‘frequently insulted him’ and is ‘in favour of the badger cull, which I regard as a tragedy and an unnecessary crime against wildlife.’

He reaffirmed his stance back in 2023, telling The Sun: ‘As the man who runs it advocates killing badgers for no good reason and I could never level with that [playing Glastonbury].

‘Have they tried to book us? I think the feeling is mutual so I think they understand how I feel.’

Which of these bands would you want to see perform Glastonbury Festival?Comment Now

The Black Keys

There’s little chance of seeing the blues rockers hit Worthy Farm again (Picture: Matthew Baker/Getty Images)

The Black Keys have played Glastonbury in the past, but have vowed never to …read more

Source:: Metro

      

(Visited 2 times, 1 visits today)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *