2022 Headliners

[Hugh Jass]

People who like Kendrick are also capable of liking other things too.

[Hugh Jass]

Ultimately I can’t accept that if Kendrick has pulled out they wouldn’t at least consider asking Elton John (at the end of his farewell tour) to perform on the grounds that they’ve already got an old white guy playing.

[BFisherr]

We haven't got anything ruling Gaga out yet right? We know she's playing at least Paris and London next summer but no dates yet. Feels less likely than Dua/Taylor/Billie for sure, but would still fill the gap. Plus it would allow Elton to make a guest appearance.  

Edited August 2, 2021 by BFisherr

[Matt42]

4 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

People who like Kendrick are also capable of liking other things too.

I think you’re deliberately over complicating my point or not quite registering the point I want to make. I’m not saying Kendrick’s fans are not diverse, I’m saying that some fans may want something with a bit of crossover to soften the blow. If Kendrick is dropped and replaced with Elton all of a sudden the top bill doesn’t become that diverse. That’s all I’m trying to say.

* and to help explain what I mean if the killers dropped out of 2019 I would expect them to get a band similar to try and keep the lineup fair.

Edited August 2, 2021 by Matt42

[PolygonWindow]

2 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

Ultimately I can’t accept that if Kendrick has pulled out they wouldn’t at least consider asking Elton John (at the end of his farewell tour) to perform on the grounds that they’ve already got an old white guy playing.

Agree to disagree pal, can’t see it but that’s just me. He isn’t obliged to play just because it’s his farewell tour.

[Matt42]

3 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

Ultimately I can’t accept that if Kendrick has pulled out they wouldn’t at least consider asking Elton John (at the end of his farewell tour) to perform on the grounds that they’ve already got an old white guy playing.

I get that but I don’t really see Elton as someone you can loop in as a replacement. Seems like someone you have to secure years in advance with a shit tonne of negotiating. 

[Hugh Jass]

2 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

I think you’re deliberately over complicating my point or not quite registering the point I want to make. I’m not saying Kendrick’s fans are not diverse, I’m saying that some fans may want something with a bit of crossover to soften the blow. If Kendrick is dropped and replaced with Elton all of a sudden the top bill doesn’t become that diverse. That’s all I’m trying to say.

* and to help explain what I mean if the killers dropped out of 2019 I would expect them to get a band similar to try and keep the lineup fair.

And the point you seem to be deliberately missing is that there is no way the festival would turn down the opportunity to sign up a bona fide living legend for the sake of some diversity quota you’ve invented - on that note, is not one of the world’s most prominent gay musicians and rights advocates pretty diverse?

I think you’re giving too much thought to the Kendrick/youth thing. I don’t think the average punter cares that much, it certainly doesn’t matter as much you seem to think it does. Most people will just see that Elton John is playing and be excited to see him, or they’ll go elsewhere.

[Matt42]

1 minute ago, Hugh Jass said:

And the point you seem to be deliberately missing is that there is no way the festival would turn down the opportunity to sign up a bona fide living legend for the sake of some diversity quota you’ve invented - on that note, is not one of the world’s most prominent gay musicians and rights advocates pretty diverse?

I think you’re giving too much thought to the Kendrick/youth thing. I don’t think the average punter cares that much, it certainly doesn’t matter as much you seem to think it does. Most people will just see that Elton John is playing and be excited to see him, or they’ll go elsewhere.

You say turn down as if Elton is raring to play and the festival would be saying no. In that situation I agree with you, if Elton was knocking on the door then I imagine he’d step in. But I don’t think that really suits Eltons character, he’s a first choice person and I can imagine you negotiate with him, he doesn’t negotiate with you. It’s nothing to do with diversity quotas and I don’t know why you see it that way even though I made the point specifically about music style?

[Hugh Jass]

10 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

I get that but I don’t really see Elton as someone you can loop in as a replacement. Seems like someone you have to secure years in advance with a shit tonne of negotiating. 

There are several unknowns here. Whilst we can all agree that the festival would most likely give the original trio first refusal we don’t know their situations. None of have have anything announced for 2022 and at best we just have rumour and speculation to go on, nothing to conclusively link any of them to Worthy Farm just yet. For all we know one or two or all three of them have told the festival early that they have no plans to play next year and the festival have been able to look elsewhere.

We don’t know what goes on behind closed doors, but it would be well known in the industry, and to the Eavii, that Elton has these dates and that gap, just as they’d know about Billie’s. Elton has never shown much inclination towards playing in the past but as this is the final stages of his final tour you can see how a massive send off at Glastonbury would appeal.

All we can do is wait and see, but I still think it’s bollocks to think they would spurn the chance to book him because of some imagined need for someone a bit younger.

[kingcrawler]

Let’s just get Lizzo to headline if Kendrick’s not touring

[Mattymooz]

1 hour ago, Matt42 said:

I get that but I don’t really see Elton as someone you can loop in as a replacement. Seems like someone you have to secure years in advance with a shit tonne of negotiating. 

Thats also a likely scenario though right? Glasto might have been booked to cap off his goodbye tour so it has been in the diary for ages and corona has just shuffled everything about...

[Mattymooz]

1 hour ago, Matt42 said:

This is another thing - if Elton isn’t someone they already have lined up would they run to replace Kendrick with someone like Elton? Or would they go for a younger act?

Also, don't think this is the case for Glasto like it might be for other festivals. Tickets havent been sold to punters & fans on the promise of Kendrick so there isnt the same obligation to provide a similar alternative...

[Losing my hair]

5 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

Elton, Macca, Taylor.

Believe.

As an old white guy, I would be very disappointed to see two old white guys headlining.

Elton has had plenty of chances to have played before, if this is his last tour and he misses out - tough. Mind you, one of the best gigs I've ever been too was Elton in '73??

[nicnzl]

I've said it before in this thread I think, but how do we know that Elton wasn't already booked for '21 or '22 way back in 2019? If you were the Eavii, and you now had 4 headliners ready to play the next festival, who are you going to politely ask if it's possible to hold off a year? The two older guys who are at the end of their career and on farewell tours? Or the two young artists who have decades of touring ahead? 

[stuartbert two hats]

14 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

Ultimately I can’t accept that if Kendrick has pulled out they wouldn’t at least consider asking Elton John (at the end of his farewell tour) to perform on the grounds that they’ve already got an old white guy playing.

Agreed.  The 2009 comparison is a good one.  Although they do try to programme a balanced bill of headliners, ultimately they had Springsteen and Neil Young playing the same year, because that was the year they were able to book those artists.  Sure, in an ideal world they would have spread them out, but artists at that level don't just wait around for Glastonbury to book them at their leisure, especially when they're doing things like retiring from live music forever. 

[stuartbert two hats]

13 hours ago, kingcrawler said:

Let’s just get Lizzo to headline if Kendrick’s not touring

My 8 year old daughter gleefully calls her "Queen Butt"

[Slugy]

Why do they have to replace a rapper with someone of the same ilk? People bought there tickets before knowing who was playing, so why would changing it be a massive issue? "I am not going now cause I had my heart set on seeing Kendrick" Just does not seem like a statement many people will be saying. There is no way they would pass up on Reg for diversities sake, when there is plenty to see across all the stages. My ideal line up would be Macca, Reg & King Kenny but I am off the same thinking as Nicnzl, I think he was booked in for 2021/2022 back in 2019 or before, so maybe one of the headliners will just have to make way for a later edition so they can honour the agreement with Reg and I can't see that person being the aging Macca.

[henry bear]

When a headliner pulls out or isn’t now available, they don’t necessarily replace like with like, it’s about who’s available - and let’s face it Reg is certainly touring in the UK at the time, with a convenient gap in his itinerary 

[compactdisc]

49 minutes ago, henry bear said:

When a headliner pulls out or isn’t now available, they don’t necessarily replace like with like, it’s about who’s available - and let’s face it Reg is certainly touring in the UK at the time, with a convenient gap in his itinerary 

Recent examples of Prince > The Who and Foos > Florence support not replacing like with like (albeit under different circumstances).

Absolutely no obligation on them to produce the same line-up for what is a new festival rather than a postponed one by all accounts.

[Matt42]

2 hours ago, compactdisc said:

Recent examples of Prince > The Who and Foos > Florence support not replacing like with like (albeit under different circumstances).

Absolutely no obligation on them to produce the same line-up for what is a new festival rather than a postponed one by all accounts.

Hmm not too sure about this example. Prince pulled and they thought “fuck we need a heritage act”.

Foo Fighters had to cancel and they had what, 4 days to find a replacement? This is a little bit different.

Edited August 3, 2021 by Matt42

[MEGABOWL]

4 hours ago, stuartbert two hats said:

Agreed.  The 2009 comparison is a good one.  Although they do try to programme a balanced bill of headliners, ultimately they had Springsteen and Neil Young playing the same year, because that was the year they were able to book those artists.  Sure, in an ideal world they would have spread them out, but artists at that level don't just wait around for Glastonbury to book them at their leisure, especially when they're doing things like retiring from live music forever. 

Agreed. The Eavis have spoken about this in the past. Ideally they would have a diverse top 3. Ideally they would get everyone they wanted when they wanted but for many very good reasons it doesn’t work look like that.

Michael specifically spoke about Young and Springsteen in 2009, saying words to the effect that ‘they were both keen to do it, this was our chance, why would we not do it?’ The same presumably applied with 2014s three white bands and again in 2017. If they have two headliner slots available in 2022 and Elton John and Paul McCartney both say yes to what the big G offers, they will book both of them. No question.

[stuartbert two hats]

27 minutes ago, MEGABOWL said:

Agreed. The Eavis have spoken about this in the past. Ideally they would have a diverse top 3. Ideally they would get everyone they wanted when they wanted but for many very good reasons it doesn’t work look like that.

Michael specifically spoke about Young and Springsteen in 2009, saying words to the effect that ‘they were both keen to do it, this was our chance, why would we not do it?’ The same presumably applied with 2014s three white bands and again in 2017. If they have two headliner slots available in 2022 and Elton John and Paul McCartney both say yes to what the big G offers, they will book both of them. No question.

Yeah, they're not going to turn down the only viable touring Beatle and Reg's swansong unless some other superstar is banging on the door.

We don't know if they do have those offers though, do we?

[Hugh Jass]

15 minutes ago, stuartbert two hats said:

Yeah, they're not going to turn down the only viable touring Beatle and Reg's swansong unless some other superstar is banging on the door.

We don't know if they do have those offers though, do we?

Well that’s it. Ol’ Reg himself is the elephant in the room here, if he’s finally up for it then there’s no way the festival don’t at least approach him if one of the first three have bailed.

[balthazarstarbuck]

I think the diversity thing has some merit in that we’ve probably saw our last all white & male set of headliners in 2017. 

However, depending on pullouts that I don’t think that precludes Reginald and Sir James being on the same bill.

IF Reg is up for it of course.

[stuartbert two hats]

8 minutes ago, balthazarstarbuck said:

I think the diversity thing has some merit in that we’ve probably saw our last all white & male set of headliners in 2017. 

However, depending on pullouts that I don’t think that precludes Reginald and Sir James being on the same bill.

IF Reg is up for it of course.

I'd be very surprised if 2017 is the last time, although I do expect them to be less frequent.