AUSTIN, Texas — H-O-T-T-O-Oh no? The Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL) is getting heat from some ticketholders after announcing that pop sensation Chappell Roan will now perform on Sunday of both weekends instead of Saturday.
On Friday afternoon, the fest announced that Chappell Roan – who was originally scheduled to perform at 4:20 p.m. on both Saturday, Oct. 5, and Saturday, Oct. 12 – will instead be performing at 6:45 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, and Sunday, Oct. 13. Caamp will take the Saturday slot Roan was originally set for.
This isn't major news for fest-goers who purchased 3-day passes, but it is for others. All sales of ACL wristbands and passes are final, meaning the festival doesn't offer refunds or exchanges.
That means anyone who purchased one-day Saturday passes thinking they would be seeing Roan is now faced with deciding if they want to purchase another pass to see her on Sunday. On the other hand, fans who were unable to purchase Saturday tickets due to high demand now have another shot.
Sunday GA, GA+, VIP and Platinum tickets for both weekends are currently available while supplies last. Three-day tickets are also still available for Weekend 2, but Weekend 1 3-day wristbands have a waitlist.
Fans react to schedule change
Some fans aren't happy with the festival's decision to move Roan to Sunday. Several ticketholders have commented on the fest's Facebook post, saying they specifically bought Saturday tickets to see her and now they don't know what to do.
"Not cool at all," Caroline Bonesteel Williams commented. "We bought passes for Saturday so my daughter could see her."
"You should offer refunds to individuals who have Saturday only passes," Chadwick Miller added. "That's terrible to just switch a major artist performing day like it's no big deal. Do better!"
It's the same story on the festival's Instagram post.
"Changing the lineup days for an artist as big as Chappell Roan this late in the game is actually wild," one comment from Lynnanne Nguyễn reads.
Why did ACL move Chappell Roan?
While it's not completely clear at this time why ACL moved Roan's set to an entirely different day, it's not the first time that a festival or large event has adjusted its plans due to her popularity.
Chappell Roan's debut album, "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess" has climbed worldwide charts considerably since its release in 2023, with hits like "Hot to Go!" and her follow-up single, "Good Luck, Babe!" seeing significant success, especially this summer.
Earlier in the year, Roan drew large crowds at festivals across the country, including Coachella in California, the Boston Calling Music Festival and the Governor's Ball Music Festival in New York City. By the time she was set to perform at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Tennessee this June, the fest made the decision to move her set to a bigger stage to deal with the demand.
Then, earlier this month, at Lollapalooza, Roan was originally slated to perform at a smaller stage at an earlier time but was moved due to increasing fan demand. According to CNN, she drew the biggest daytime set and one of the largest crowds ever seen at the Chicago festival.
Lollapalooza is produced by C3 Presents, an Austin-based promotion and production company that also produces ACL.
ACL Fest is scheduled for Oct. 4-6 and Oct. 11-13 at Zilker Park in Downtown Austin.