Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year's 13th EXIT festival has been postponed from August 16 to 2020, XNUMX, the organizers announced.
"After the epidemic ended in most of the Balkan countries, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić asked that the EXIT Festival not be canceled, but moved to a later summer date. This news became one of the leading news in the world music industry last week and instilled the necessary hope for the return of live events and the return of life to normal. Now, after additional consultations, the new dates for the 20th birthday celebration of the largest festival in the region and one of the leading festivals in the world have been set for August 13th to 16th this year! The Exit team also announces that the entire event will be organized in close cooperation with the National Crisis Staff of the Republic of Serbia, and as one of the measures, the capacity of the festival will be reduced," the announcement states.
Also, some trenches and tunnels, which normally house around 40 stages and zones, will be closed. Nevertheless, the most impressive places of the Petrovaradin fortress that make EXIT legendary, such as the colossal Dance Arena, Main Stage and the iconic No Sleep stage, as well as some other stages, will be shining brightly this summer as well! "The resumption of ticket sales begins on June 1st, while more details about the festival, refund options and the program will arrive in the coming days. The festival team has confirmed that a large number of acts are extremely eager to perform this summer. Many have been in isolation for months, separated from fans, so they see EXIT as an opportunity to reunite everyone together".
The organizers say that EXIT received a large number of messages and emails of support from artists, agents and other festivals, who see the festival as a chance to revive the entire global event industry.
"Even more important than the revival of the music industry is the signal of hope and optimism that we send to the whole society, which is that the worst is behind us. Between the spread of panic, which was not lacking in the previous period, and optimism, we always choose the latter," say the EXIT team, and add an interesting reference to the festival's revolutionary history:
"Exactly 20 years ago, after a decade of isolation and war in the 90s, we found a way out and accepted it as our name. Now is the time to find a global way out of the pandemic crisis.”
Regional tourism experts at the recently held forum "From cancellation to cancellation" as part of the EXIT strategy international conference, expressed their assessment that Serbia made a very smart move to be the first to announce this kind of news, because young people will be the first to travel, and that countries that recognize this recover tourism faster than others. Numerous global media also reported on the Serbian Prime Minister's recommendation to postpone Exit until August.
"The famous British newspaper The Guardian stated that Serbia managed to overcome the health crisis without serious consequences, while the British Telegraph emphasizes the assessment that by August the epidemiological situation will be under complete control throughout Europe. The American Pollstar also writes about the drastic improvement of the health situation and reports how the example of EXIT can help speed up the recovery of the entire world music industry. Serbia, like many European countries, will reopen their borders without any limits or PCR tests. The organizers note that if by chance there is a new wave of the epidemic in certain countries, visitors from those countries will have to undergo a PCR test that will be free of charge or available at a very low price. However, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić said that epidemiologists expect the situation in all of Europe to be fully under control by August," the organizers' statement concluded.
Bonus video:
