Neil Young calls off his Glastonbury ‘boycott’

Neil Young has announced he will play at this year’s Glastonbury Festival, just days after saying he turned down a slot due to the BBC’s involvement.

The 79-year-old had announced that he and his band would not participate in the program because the BBC “wanted us to do a lot of things in a way that we had no interest in”.

But In a new post on my websiteThe rock legend wrote: “Due to an error in information received, I have decided not to play Glastonbury Festival, which I have always loved.

“Gladly the festival is now back on our itinerary and we look forward to playing. Hope to see you there!”

Glastonbury organizer Emily Avis welcomed the decision.

“What a start to the year!” she wrote on Instagram,

“Neil Young is an artist who is very close to our hearts at Glastonbury. He does things his own way and that’s why we love him.

“We can’t wait to welcome them back here to headline The Pyramid in June.”

It is not known whether the change of heart means Young’s 2025 Glastonbury set will be televised.

The BBC has been the exclusive broadcast partner of Glastonbury since 1997, and broadcasts over 50 hours of coverage each year.

However, the last time Young played the festival in 2009, he allowed the BBC to show only a small part of his two-hour headline set.

the corporation said at that time It had spent “a few months” negotiating with Young’s management to televise the performance.

Ultimately, his team agreed to air only five songs, a decision made while Young was playing on the Pyramid Stage.

Mark Cooper, then executive producer of the BBC’s Glastonbury coverage, explained, “They believe in maintaining the live event and the mystery of it and the mystery of your artist.”

He added, “You probably won’t find a lot of Neil Young performances available for free on TV or online.” “He generally likes the audience to find his albums.”

In his initial post on Tuesday, the star criticized what he described as the BBC’s “corporate control” over Glastonbury and said the festival is “not what I remember”.

When artists participate in programs they are not forced to hand over broadcast rights, and contracts are often signed at the last minute.

BBC News has contacted Glastonbury and BBC Music for clarification.