Detroit's Mo Pop Festival is once again canceled, and it hurts so bad

By Jerilyn Jordan

Mar 9, 2021 at 12:58 pm

Audio By Carbonatix

[
          {
            "name": "GPT - Leaderboard - Inline - Content",
            "component": "35519556",
            "insertPoint": "5th",
            "startingPoint": "3",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "3",
            "maxInsertions": 100,
            
            "adList": [
              {
                "adPreset": "LeaderboardInline"
              }
            ]
          }
          
        ]

click to enlarge

Courtesy of Mo Pop

Detroit's Lizzo performing at the 2019 Mo Pop Festival.

Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

That's the sound of yet another year without Mo Pop Festival, which, according to a formal announcement from organizers released Tuesday, is exactly what 2021 is shaping up to be. Vaccinate us, daddy.

The two-day boutique indie festival, which has hosted performances by Tame Impala, Lizzo, Run the Jewels, Tyler the Creator, Father John Misty, Solange, and others, is officially off again (due to the pandemic, duh), and rescheduled for July 30-31, 2022.

“It's hard to write this again almost a year later, but 2021 is still too soon for a safe return of the Mo Pop Festival that unities us,” a statement posted to the festival's social media reads. “As much as we want it to happen, after exhaustive efforts to deliver the event you've come to love — and many conversations with both artists and local officials — we feel that it is best to focus on the future.”

Established in 2015, Mo Pop spent two years at Sterling Heights' Michigan Lottery Amphitheater at Freedom Hill before relocating to Detroit's 22-acre West Riverfront Park. However, prior to the event's cancellation last year, Mo Pop announced that it would be moving the festival to the grounds of Historic Fort Wayne Park located at 6325 W. Jefferson Ave., just southwest of downtown. The reason? Well, West Riverfront Park is undergoing a $55 million overhaul, which will ultimately eliminate the open field once occupied by the sprawling annual festival.

The 2020 iteration was expected to host performances by Khalid, the 1975, Phoebe Bridgers, Orville Peck, Doja Cat, as well as local acts Dogleg, WhoBoy, Whiterosemoxie, Charity, and Haute to Death.

Per the statement, 2020 pass holders will receive an email in the coming days regarding exchanges or refunds.

For more information about festival updates, ticketing, and lineup visit MoPopFestival.com.

To revisit the 2019 festivities, visit Metro Times' photo gallery.

And to quote Lizzo: truth hurts.

We have a new events newsletter! Find out the best things to do in the area every Thursday morning in your inbox.