Well that didn’t take long.
Gordy’s HWY 30 Music Fest Texas, which had been scheduled for October 17-20 at Texas Motor Speedway, has officially been canceled.
The past few years, Gordy’s HWY 30 Music Fest has put together some killer lineups of some of the best acts in country music. The original festival takes place annually in Filer, Idaho, and this year’s edition featured artists like Shane Smith & the Saints, The Steel Woods, Charles Wesley Godwin, Pecos & the Rooftops, Muscadine Bloodline, Treaty Oak Revival, and more.
In fact the Idaho festival has become so popular in recent years that last year Gordy’s expanded and added a new annual festival at Texas Motor Speedway.
The inaugural edition of Gordy’s HWY 30 Texas featured headliners Zach Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Cody Jinks and Koe Wetzel, along with artists like Ashley McBryde, Mike & the Moonpies (now known as Silverada), Jake Worthington, Ray Wylie Hubbard and more.
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So naturally, after the lineups that organizers have put together in years past, fans were eager to see who they could expect in Texas for this year’s festival.
Well the 2024 edition of HWY 30 Texas was scheduled to take place once again at Texas Motor Speedway on October 17-20. And just a month ahead of the festival, the lineup finally dropped – and it was a head scratcher.
Headliners for this year’s festival included Nelly, Vanilla Ice, Hinder & Color Me Badd.
What?
Reckless Kelly was also originally announced as a headliner, but quickly pulled out.
And don’t get me wrong, there are a couple of smaller artists who were worth seeing, names like Graycie York and Wes Shipp. There was also a performance by Lonestar, though the current lineup of the band doesn’t feature their longtime lead singer Richie McDonald so even that might be disappointing to ’90s country fans.
But disappointment didn’t even seem to describe the comments that are being left over the lineup announcement. Quite a few people were downright mad that they bought tickets to the festival only to be stuck with this bizarre and disappointing lineup:
“Remember when you asked what bands your fans wanted to see after last year’s event? This wasn’t it. This lineup is an embarrassment compared to last year.”
“No offense but I could get Color and All41 to play my backyard bbq for a six pack and hot dog.”
“This is incredibly disappointing after last year! Mad I bought tickets for this year! Y’all would have been better off cancelling this year than putting on a crappy show”
“My neighbor just learned how to play guitar and started a band, maybe he can be a headliner”
“Worst festival lineup I’ve ever seen”
“What a tragedy this year is compared to last year. I wish I could get a refund on tickets that we bought last year when we were there now now I’m just pissed I spent the money.”
“This is embarrassing. You need to cancel and refund everyone’s ticket.”
“Last year’s line up was amazing. Wtf is this trash”
“The ol’ bait and switch. Done got got. I’ve got 3 passes and a camping spot for sale.”
“No wonder y’all waited so long to put this lineup out there”
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And it seems that organizers saw the outrage – and most likely the requests for refunds – and decided to go ahead and pull the plug altogether.
In a post to their social media, the festival announced that they were regrouping to try again in 2025:
“As you know, we’ve always been the “People’s Festival” from day one, and we want you to know we’re listening.<
After much deliberation with our team, we have made the extremely difficult decision to postpone this year’s music fest in Fort Worth. While we were overjoyed to welcome so many exciting and talented artists to the stage, we want to ensure that we also take the time to slow down, regroup and come back stronger than ever in 2025.
As many of you know, Gordy has been facing some significant health challenges, and right now, his focus needs to be on rest and healing.
We know how much this event means to you all. Thank you for your patience, understanding, and unwavering support.
Ticket holders will also be emailed directly.
Stay tuned, stay safe, and we’ll see you next year!”
Honestly, that’s probably for the best.
