In yet another blow to Australia's music festival scene, it's just been announced that Groovin' the Moo (GTM) has been cancelled for 2025 – the second consecutive year that the event will not run.
Last year, only two weeks after the line-up reveal, the festival announced it would not go ahead. Organisers sited poor ticket sales as the major deciding factor in cancelling the festival, which haven't been strong enough to support the costs associated with running the nationally touring event.
Prior to the shock cancellation, the festival toured across the country for 17 years, beginning back in 2005. It hit up cities that typically don't host major music events, like Adelaide, Canberra, Bendigo, Newcastle, Sunshine Coast and Bunbury.
In an Instagram post the GTM account shared on January 31 2025, organisers gave the following statement on the festival cancelling for another year: "Groovin' the Moo won't be happening in 2025, while we work on finding the most sustainable model for Australia's most loved regional touring festival."
When the event was cancelled in 2024, organisers commented: "we hope to be able to bring Groovin' the Moo back to regional communities in the future". But now, it seems very uncertain when that future will arrive.
This cancellation comes just one week after Splendour in the Grass organisers announced the festival would also not be returning in 2025, after it was also cancelled in 2024 due to "unexpected events". Watch this space for any further updates.