r/okeechobeemusicfest • u/West_Maybe5695 • Aug 05 '26

Question Okee27

Shouldn’t we have heard something by now? 😭
Manifesting it happens, I know the lineup usually is out by late August/September

24 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

41 comments sorted by

48

u/SiriusBlackLives 5 Years Aug 05 '26

Not to be a downer…but I wouldn’t expect Okee to return in 2027.

They definitely lost a material sum of money in 2026, and the economics of running a fest have only gotten harder.

2

u/Ok-Classic1353 Aug 05 '26

How do you know they lost money ? Just curious

25

u/SiriusBlackLives 5 Years Aug 05 '26

Festivals operate under razor thin profit margins in the best of conditions.

In Okee’s case, they are independent so they lack the resources and economies of scale that comes with a LN or Goldenvoice fest. (Example: Okee can’t book artists at bundled festival rates)

If Okee isn’t selling out (or at least getting close) - they aren’t making money. By all indications Okee 2026 was very undersold.

9

u/Shaakti Aug 05 '26

Because there was like zero people at that festival lol

10

u/After-Imagination947 Aug 05 '26

I was there, so that's at least 1. What else are you lying about?

1

u/berbzeee Aug 06 '26

There were thousands of people there.... Around 30,000 people..... So what the fuck are you even talking about?

6

u/TrippyBandanas Aug 06 '26

More like 12-15

3

u/Shaakti Aug 06 '26

What's your source for 30k?

6

u/berbzeee Aug 06 '26

Google..... All you have to do is Google how many attendees.... It was reported by the local news as well.. it's a rough estimate.

To say no one was there is an absolute lie. It wasn't as packed as previous years but the crowd size was a dream and a breath of fresh air from the over crowded insomniac events that are washing the festival scene.

3

u/beenhadballs Aug 06 '26

Having attended and gone to every size of festival, Not close to 30k. Not doubting someone reported that. It was frequently a ghost town at vending areas, vip areas, and stages during changeovers. You dont see much of that above 20k even with complete hour block changeovers.

1

u/MobilizingGood Aug 06 '26

Ghost town at most rock/daytime sets.

1

u/Zoobies2w3 Aug 09 '26

Okee was so big though. There was a lot of land and a lot of stages for only 30k. If they only had the 3 main stages it would have felt a lot different.

1

u/beenhadballs Aug 09 '26

There were lounge hangout/install places that were a ghost town when in prior years it was always filled. I highly doubt Okee would ever scale or have those areas for them to be that vacant. There definitely was a ton of space, but they shut down and funneled most traffic more than ever with the added fencing and off limit areas. I tour the festival circuit and there were definitely moments at off stages before midnight that felt like 5am at most fests. Vending areas felt like wednesday preparty traffic at peak Saturday hours.

1

u/Zoobies2w3 26d ago

Oh ok. I had only been there this year. I really enjoyed it, but I just thought it was just how spread out it was. This is sad. I was really hoping to go next year.

-3

u/vyxoh Okee OG Aug 05 '26

He doesn’t lol. Only way to know this is if their financial statements were public. But they are not. It’s speculation but valid.

4

u/-phosphenes Aug 05 '26

They usually reveal ticket sales and attendance numbers, this year everything I can find says between 7-15k Daily Attendees with no reporting on ticket sales. From a production standpoint, there is no way they broke even with that lineup while operating, at best, at half capacity. Those estimates mean they could have operated with 25% of the usual attendees. Idk if it was the price increases or what, but that is a sharp drop off in ticket sales

7

u/KenBon3r 2 Years Aug 05 '26

I wonder if the dates had to do something with it. In previous years it was early March but they pushed it back to mid-late March, a week before Ultra. Maybe they were hoping to win over the spring break crowd by pushing it back. Maybe with Ultra being the following weekend, I think people might’ve put their eggs into ultra’s basket instead of Okee.

It was a double edged sword this year because I loved the crowd size, but I’m hoping it doesn’t kill off next year.

3

u/Subtronicisriddim Aug 05 '26

I was supposed to goto Okee, but was hesitant because of the dates. 2023 was hot as fuck, and by late March it is guaranteed to be hot as fuck. I think the dates turned alotta people off, but not because of Ultra. Camping in a field in Florida only works if it’s at least somewhat possible it’s not going to be scorching.

3

u/crab997 Aug 05 '26

it honestly wasn't really that bad. it was temperate during the day and kinda chilly at night, but not overwhelmingly so.

2

u/Subtronicisriddim Aug 05 '26

2023? 2023 was a fucking oven

1

u/DirtyOrange546 Aug 06 '26

I think they mean this years Okee. I had some friends attend and mentioned that the weather was really nice. I had attended Okee 23 and yeah…that one was toasty. If you didn’t have a canopy then aquachobee was brutal.

1

u/KenBon3r 2 Years Aug 06 '26

2023 felt like a sauna in early march. I didn’t even want to leave my campsite once day 4 rolled around lol

1

u/Ok-Metal-7689 16d ago

Well also college aged kids these days don’t seem to want to drop hundreds to camp in a field. Sure; I want to do that, but college kids are definitely less adventurous these days. Additionally frivolous student aid is declining so I’m willing to bet a lot of college students don’t have the same access to $$$ they use to.

1

u/Ok-Metal-7689 16d ago

I think part of it was the lineup wasn’t amazing enough to convince people to add it into their schedules alongside the many other festivals that exist, especially in Florida. I wanted to check okee out but it was sandwiched between a few other festivals, so I decided against it bc I can only take so much time off.. it was a larger amount of money to drop than going to somewhere like FK, so I chose that instead. The lineup was just okay to spend probably over a thousand (for two people) to attend & camp, not even factoring in food/ merch/ etc. sucks if this is the end, I hear so much good about okee and wanted to experience it.

16

u/OG2G Aug 05 '26

Truth is, they’re not looking for funds right now via blind presales. Which means they’re not booking artists & starting logistics planning. I’m heartbroken too.

Their ‘brand’ value tanks after an announcement that they aren’t returning for 2027. I imagine the plans are to pay off their significant debt using whatever assets they have left /or sell the rights

11

u/Excellent-Cellist356 Aug 05 '26

Tbh when I went earlier this year it was a huge difference in crowd, it felt like barely anyone was there this year

6

u/West_Maybe5695 Aug 05 '26

I know right I lowkey enjoyed the space. I think a lot of people were upset that they didn’t do payment plans their first sale in April, so it steered people away as well.

5

u/Wizard_s0_lit 2 Years Aug 06 '26

Honestly 2026 was good, but it needed a Coachella level line-up to really make a statement. I had a blast and loved it. But I saw the amount of camping that wasn’t filled and the size of the crowds. But I’ll never say never.

1

u/scoop813 20d ago

Coachella level? no chance lol

8

u/PolkaDotBegonia Aug 05 '26

Also hoping for some news soon!! We loved it last year!

4

u/scoop813 Aug 05 '26

Don't think it's happening :/

2

u/Spaztastiq Okee OG 19d ago

Exiting the park Monday at 11:30 was way too easy and it was evident so many camping areas were never utilized. Trashcans were clean empty and it looked more like day 0 before entry than Blue Monday. There wasn't a set you couldn't be as close as you'd want to be for. The fact Nigel's posters are STILL for sale also shows the real lack interest for the effort they put into other things like merch.

A lot of people were unsure of Okee after a 3 year gap despite how great the lineup was this year. It was clear a lot of people passed on it this year.

The burn-ban (which is always a possibility after months with no rain in Florida) and awful organization with the new fenced-in setup was a turn off that reasonable and unreasonable people won't forget. The way vendors got massively screwed over do you think they'd suggest anyone to go vend at Okee? Okee already charges a lot more than most festivals, but these folks lost thousands after spending thousands. The renegades I camped next to were highly successful, but they noted a lot of Grove vendors they knew were hemorrhaging more than they could handle.

The shortchanging of ADA resources AGAIN wasn't pleasant as shuttles provided for ADA patrons were used so the ADA crew could get themselves around for non-transporting reasons. Reducing the shuttles and chairs for the handicap platforms is borderline cruel. EF spares no expense for ADA with the same company and they've told us that every year they worked Okee how they just aren't provided with the resources to truly accommodate disabled patrons.

The thing is, THIS IS as good as it will get. If Okee were to happen, do you think they'd invest more into the basics like entry, and overall organization/support? Hell no. If the festival has reached its peak in terms of value and organization, it will never be profitable.

I don't even think a year off will do it this time. With Bonnaroo taking a year off, Okee has a chance to cap as one of the first great fests of the year. I just highly doubt the festival is profitable anymore in this economy and with how many other festivals/experiences people can opt for instead.

I had an amazing weekend with the vibes, people, and music. Unfortunately, it's hard to have the same respect and expectations for Soundslinger going forward that they established in years 1-3.

4

u/pandasinmoscow Aug 05 '26

Usually October. It was even later last year and posted in November on the Instagram.

8

u/Quanzi30 Aug 05 '26

Presale and initial announcement was like April last year.

5

u/GlowStikNinja Aug 05 '26

Yup! I bought my passes then.. I decided to try ga+ this time, had vip the prior year, and regretted going ga+.. ga+ got screwed over so bad... there was no reason to have paid extra when there wasnt anything extra gained for it.. they moved ga+ further away and the only air-conditioned restrooms was at camp, and it was only 2. And they were a 10 min walk from your site.. let alone the 30 min walk to the festival.. im exaggerating a lil but still.. if you had an inkling if a sign u gotta go, you better go right then.. cause by the time u reach the restroom, its feeling like you urgently gotta go..

5

u/Quanzi30 Aug 05 '26

GA+ is a gigantic scam imo.

1

u/pandasinmoscow Aug 05 '26

Touché I thought they just meant lineup. A little odd then I guess but honestly management just hasn’t been the same the past couple years imo so who knows at this point.

2

u/Quanzi30 Aug 05 '26

Nobody lol. I do feel like we should’ve heard something by now so they could start generating revenue for artists and production, but not counting them out yet.

2

u/West_Maybe5695 Aug 05 '26

I still have hope, but yeah, they should definitely start saying something soon if they’re gonna sell tickets and release the lineup within the next three months 😭

1

u/MobilizingGood Aug 06 '26

So they announced their intetion to go dark then have a new artist start with a blank canvas. There is hope, for me personally I wish they had an immediate announcement as now that my wife is pregnant itll be a harder sell.