The 2025 edition of Las Vegas’ Sick New World festival, which was to feature headlining sets from Metallica and the reunited Linkin Park, has been canceled by organizers Live Nation.
The third edition of the massive, single-day event was set for April 12 and was to have boasted more than 50 acts, including Queens of the Stone Age, Gojira, AFI, Evanescence, Tomahawk, 311, Daron Malakian and Scars on Broadway, the Flaming Lips, the Sisters of Mercy, Meshuggah, Filter and Cradle of Filth. Tickets will be automatically refunded.
“Despite our best efforts, we’ve encountered unforeseen circumstances that we are unable to overcome for next year’s show,” the company said in a statement. “We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the dedicated SNW fans who had made plans to join us for another cultural celebration of hard rock, goth, alternative and heavy music. Please stay tuned for further and future information regarding Sick New World.”
According to HITS Daily Double, the event ran into trouble in part due to its former booker, Jeffrey Shuman, overpaying for talent, with Metallica and Linkin Park allegedly pocketing $5 million each.
Since launching in 2023, Sick New World has hosted some of the only System of a Down performances in the past five years and has elevated both new and cult classic acts in the hard rock genre. “I had more fun there than I had on many, many other tours, and that’s why we’re doing it again,” frontman Serj Tankian told SPIN after the inaugural edition. “It was a blast. We rehearsed just enough to know our chops and then the rest, who the fuck knows? Let’s see what happens on stage.”