Loyal visitors. This is the answer to why so many Swedish festivals manage a year with a canceled festival in order to still be able to re-emerge in 2021. At least that's how it sounds when Kulturnyheterna calls around.

- It has been incredibly uncertain throughout the spring. We have incurred large expenses: advances to artists that we have negotiated and an area that needs to be paid. But we went out with support membership early and that you could donate your tickets if you wanted to support the festival and we got a good response, there were very many who chose to donate their tickets, says Linus Grebäck von Melen who is a communicator at Öland roots, a reggae festival with about 7,000 visitors annually.

Despite the strong response, Öland roots still has less money to spend than usual.

- We have enough to do a festival, but we can not spend the same budget on, for example, artists as we usually do. It is very possible that there will be a smaller festival next year, says Linus Grebäck von Melen.

"Greater focus on local bookings"

Another Swedish reggae festival with loyal fans is Uppsala reggae festival.

- Three quarters of those who bought tickets have decided to keep them until next year. Seven to eight percent have chosen to donate them, which is estimated. The biggest help is that people keep their ticket, says festival general Yared Tekeste.

Thanks to this, a crowdfunding campaign and a streamed support concert with artists performing for free, Yared Tekeste feels confident that Uppsala reggae will be able to celebrate its 20th anniversary next year.

Norbergfestival, a festival for art and electronic music in the disused mimer lava in Norberg, has its returning visitors to thank too much. About half of the visitors have chosen to keep the tickets.

"Thanks to municipal, regional and state support, our non-profit association Anrikningsverket will probably also be present at no festival this year", writes artistic director Johan Östman to Kulturnyheterna, and continues:

"On the other hand, it looks like events such as music festivals will come to be the last thing that can be allowed to return, so the situation does not feel completely safe for next summer either. I think that a general difference for the music field may be that there will be a greater focus on local and national bookings for some time to come, and that may also characterize Norbergfestival 2021. ”

The picture is a montage. Photo: TT / SVT / Amina Adelai

"Extremely few redemptions"

Festivals such as Lollapalooza in Stockholm, Summerburst in Gothenburg and Sweden rock in Norway outside Sölvesborg have the large international booking company Live nation behind them and are therefore less financially vulnerable. The same is true for the Gothenburg festival Way out west, which is run by the booking company Luger. Storsjöyran, on the other hand, with just under 30,000 visitors a year, is one of the country's larger independent festivals. They have also done well - against all odds.

- Many have chosen to keep the ticket for next year and that strengthens the cash flow. We have had extremely few redemptions, I must say. It shows that we have loyal visitors who cherish our festival, says CEO Andréa Wiktorsson.

Being able to lay off staff for a short time and that the company also runs other projects in addition to the festival was very helpful, according to Wiktorsson.

"Impossible to get income"

A festival that went less well is Peace and love in Borlänge, which in the early ten was Sweden's largest festival.

- Peace and love was shrugged. There was a very clear installment plan that we followed since the festival in 2019. When in March we were forced to realize that it was not possible to carry out the festival in 2020, the payment plan was still there but it was impossible to get income. We had no opportunity to get any part of the cultural support that was promised, says Perra Lundqvist, festival manager.

The cultural support that existed could only be applied for events that would have taken place before 31 May, according to Perra Lundqvist. The debts had several reasons, artist bookings and bad weather in 2019, among other things. The company has now filed for bankruptcy, but the event equipment supplier Ekman event has flagged that it wants to start a new festival in Borlänge starting in 2021, to fill the gap that has arisen.