TYLER, Texas — With recent guidelines issued by the federal and state government in response to the coronavirus outbreak, the annual Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival has been pushed back to the fall.
According to organizers, the event will now take place October 11, 2020, in Downtown Tyler.
The following statement was posted on the event's social media page:
Red Dirt friends and family,
As you are all aware, things have taken quite a turn locally and nationally the past few weeks in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. A few weeks ago we let you know that we were still on track, things were business as usual, and we were closely monitoring the situation while keeping in contact with dozens of people who are involved in this process with us.
A few days after our message posted, the CDC released recommendations to suspend all public gatherings of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks, which was followed by the federal government recommending to suspend gatherings of more than 10 people. Unfortunately, Red Dirt became a victim.
This week, at the advisement of local government officials and our health department, as well as schedule changes with our artists, we had to make the incredibly difficult decision to change course. Red Dirt will now be happening Sunday, October 11, in Downtown Tyler.
All tickets purchased for the original date will be good for the rescheduled date.
If you are unable to attend the new date, refunds may be requested until 12:00 PM Friday, May 29, by filling out the form here: https://reddirtbbqfest.com/2020-refund-request/.
All refund requests after the deadline will not be able to be processed. This will allow us time to put the refunded tickets back on sale at 10:00 AM Wednesday, June 10. However many tickets are refunded will be the number put on sale, whether it’s 12 or 2,012.
We know a Sunday may not be the ideal situation for everyone, but with the massive amounts of rescheduling artists are experiencing at this time, this was the only day we could do in order to keep our lineup intact and keep it possible for our BBQ restaurants to attend.
This decision was not made lightly. It was not made without stress and constant scrambling to make every possible decision fit the situation as best we could. We are truly sorry for any inconvenience and further disruption of life as we’ve come to know it lately. But these decisions are made with our guests, our artists, our barbecue restaurants, our sponsors, and our staff above anything else. The safety and health of everyone involved with this event are more important than anything else, and going against that mindset is not what we’re about. Some things are bigger than a festival (though not much).
Like many other industries are experiencing in these times, decisions like this affects the lives and livelihoods of countless people. So, please … save any criticisms for another day, and keep the people in our industry and the hospitality industry in your thoughts.
Thank you for understanding. Thank you for your support. Things may not be going as planned now, but we’re looking forward to celebrating our seventh year on October 11 and having the same kind of party we’ve had the past six years.
Cheers,
Chase Colston
Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival
