Live Nation Entertainment issued a statement intended at calming fan concerns over the security at its events, following widespread questions about the upcoming When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas, after some realized that the company running the event is the same one that has drawn major criticism over security at Astroworld in Texas last year.
“The safety of fans, artists and staff is thoroughly planned for among event organizers and in coordination with local authorities,” Live Nation wrote in a statement responding to the surge in commentary, which included concern over how so many bands would be able to perform at a one-day festival without sacrificing security and safety. “We have seen a lot of excitement around this festival and we look forward to putting on an incredible event for all of the fans this October. We encourage fans to check the festival website and socials for all of the latest updates.”
“Set times will vary with earlier bands having shorter sets and the headliners having the longest,” the company continued. “For many festivals it is typical for earlier acts to have 20-30 minutes, while headliners often perform longer, closer to 45 to 60 minutes or more.”
When We Were Young was announced last week, with My Chemical Romance and Paramore headlining and a who’s who of 2000’s emo and pop acts on the bill. Initially scheduled for one day at Las Vegas Festival Grounds, the event sold quickly on Friday and a second day was added, with the same group of performers set to return.
Soon after its announcement, some took to social media to point out that its promoter, Live Nation, was the same promoter of the ill-fated Astroworld festival in Houston that saw ten killed in a crowd surge, with hundreds of others injured. Since that tragedy, the company has been under intense scrutiny for a history of crowd safety lapses, and has been asked to respond to questions by a congressional committee regarding its safety record, delayed to February.
When We Were Young Fest looked pretty cool until you notice it’s $225 nonrefundable for one day and it’s run by the same company who was responsible for AstroWorld and you realize they’re actually just preying on the pop punk scene to pay back their litigation fees
— Pfizer Nation’s Princess Azula (@space_mom_) January 19, 2022
the comparison to astroworld is pretty apt too, because when we were young fest is being organized by the same people. i don’t trust this festival at all and y’all shouldn’t either pic.twitter.com/z2zMdzgwX1
— 🔪 aurelian | BLM | Free Palestine🔪 (@bagelprinxe) January 19, 2022
Despite those concerns, the affair was a hot-seller from the moment it was available on Friday, with tickets for the initial date quickly snapped up, and a second date selling out quickly as well, at least in terms of whatever number of passes were not held back for later sale by organizers. There is a waitlist available to sign up at the primary ticketing website, and tickets are widely available for both dates on ticket resale marketplaces.
When We Were Young Festival Tickets
When We Were Young Festival Tickets at TicketClub | Free Membership
When We Were Young Festival Tickets at Vivid Seats
When We Were Young Festival Tickets at StubHub
When We Were Young Festival Tickets at TickPick
When We Were Young Festival Tickets at Ticketmaster/Frontgate (waitlist)
When We Were Young Festival Lineup
My Chemical Romance, Paramore, AFI, The Used, Bring Me The Horizon, Taking Back Sunday, Dashboard Confessional, Alkaline Trio, Manchester Orchestra, A Day To Remember, Pierce The Veil, I Prevail, The Story So Far, Dance Gavin Dance, The All American Rejects, Boys Like Girls, Car Seat Headrest, Sleeping With Sirens, Knocked Loose, JXDN, Avril Lavigne, Motionless in White, Black Veil Brides, Ice Nine Kills, Senses Fail, Bayside, Mom Jeans, Mayday Parade, The Maine, Neck Deep, Silverstein, Palaye Royale, Bright Eyes, Poppy, Nessa Barrett, Wolf Alice, Acceptance, Story of the Year, Atreyu, PVRIS, Saosin, Glassjaw, Lilhuddy, TV Girl, The Starting Line, Thursday, Anberlin, Jimmy Eat World, 3OH!3, State Champs, Four Year Strong, We The Kings, The Wonder Years, Royal & The Serpent, The Ready Set, Kittie, Hawthorne Heights, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, The Garden, Horrorpops, Meet Me At The Altar, The Linda Lindas and Prentiss.
