Pitchfork Music Festival is leaving Chicago after 19 years

Pitchfork Music Festival has cancelled its flagship Chicago edition after 19 years.

In a statement released via Instagram yesterday (November 11), Pitchfork announced that the festival will not go ahead in 2025, citing the "rapidly evolving" festival landscape as the reason for its termination.

“This decision was not made lightly,” reads the statement. “For 19 years, Pitchfork Music Festival has been a celebration of music, art, and community—a space where memories were made, voices were amplified, and the shared love of music brought us all together."

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“The festival, while aligned with the taste of the Pitchfork editorial team, has always been a collaborative effort, taking on a life of its own as a vital pillar 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 unforgettable performances, and to the fans who brought unmatched energy year after year.”

While the festival has been cancelled, Pitchfork has said it will "continue to produce events” in Chicago “in 2025 and beyond”, and looks forward to "continuing to create spaces where music, culture, and community intersect in uplifting ways”.

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Founded in 2006, the Chicago edition of Pitchfork's renowned multi-genre music festival was the first of several worldwide editions. Since then, offshoots have been launched in Paris, Berlin, London, and Mexico City.

This year, the Chicago edition of Pitchfork Music Festival took place from July 19 - 21 at Union Park, with performances from Jamie xx, Yaeji, De La Soul, L'Rain, and more.

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Fans in the comments of Pitchfork's recent Instagram post have expressed disappointment at the lack of explanation regarding the cancellation, with some speculating about the publication’s absorption by GQ Magazine as a potential cause.

Pitchfork merged with the men’s magazine in January this year, leading to several senior staff members being made redundant.

The London ediiton of Pitchfork Music Festival ended on Sunday (November 10), with sets from the likes of Alice Glass, Tierra Whack, Arooj Aftab, CASISDEAD, Sega Bodega, Kae Tempest, Empress Of, and more.

Read the full statement from Pitchfork below.

Meena Sears is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Instagram