Photo: Drew Moholland/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — From venue updates to leadership changes, fans have taken to social media to speculate the possible motivation behind Boston Calling's abrupt gap year announcement.
Organizers of the event recently posted on their website that they would interrupt their annual tradition and return June 2027. After no word as to why, Mayor Wu has finally shared the reason behind the cancellation with WBZ NewsRadio.
"They had reached out to me to share that because next year will be so busy, between the 250th anniversary celebrations, between FIFA coming, that there will just be a lot of strain on hotel rooms and events and sponsorships. And so given all that is happening in that exact same window in Boston, that it would be better not to have different sponsorships that are conflicting or stretched too thin and really do it right so that we can enjoy the Boston Calling event bigger and better when it does come back."
This year more than 40,000 people gathered at the Harvard Athletics Complex for the music fest. Attendees enjoyed performances from artists like Luke Combs, T-Pain, Sheryl Crow and Megan Moroney on one rotating stage instead of the two stages from previous years. Updates also included video walls, more water stations and an air-conditioned arena.
Although the decision to skip 2026 is disappointing, Mayor Wu says she completely supports the choice to postpone the event.
"I totally understand and respect the organizers decision that with so much going on at such a large scale, they wanted to focus and be a part of what's already happening and then focus on this for the year after."
WBZ NewsRadio’s Mike Macklin (@mikemacklinwbz) reports.