Neil Young has confirmed that he has overturned his decision to pull out of Glastonbury 2025.
The singer, songwriter and guitarist made headlines earlier this week when he shared a statement with fans, confirming that he was set to perform at Glastonbury later this year, but had pulled out due to creative differences.
Glastonbury is set to return to its usual Worthy Farm site in Pilton, Somerset from June 25 this year, and no acts have been confirmed for the line-up so far – barring Rod Stewart, who will play the Sunday afternoon Legends Slot. Nile Rodgers & Chic later shared by accident that they would also be returning to the festival this summer.
Young was one of the numerous high-profile names that had been speculated as a possible headliner, and confirmed in his post that he had agreed to play initially, but had then changed his mind.
Writing on his website Neil Young Archives on Tuesday (December 31), he said: “The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all time favorite outdoor gigs. We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in.”
“It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being,” he continued. “Thanks for coming to see us the last time! We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be. Hope to see you at one of the other venues on the tour.”
Now, less than a week after sharing the update, the songwriting icon has announced that he has changed his mind once again, and will be playing at the site as initially planned.
Taking to his website today (January 3), he shared a brief update with fans saying that his decision to back out was a result of miscommunication, and that he will be returning to Worthy Farm later this summer after all.
“Due to an error in the information received, I had decided to not play the Glastonbury festival, which I always have loved,” he began. “Happily, the festival is now back on our itinerary and we look forward to playing! Hope to see you there!”
Festival organiser Emily Eavis has also confirmed news that Young will be performing at Glasto 2025 as a headliner too, taking to Instagram to write: “What a start to the year! Neil Young is an artist who’s very close to our hearts at Glastonbury. He does things his own way and that’s why we love him. We can’t wait to welcome him back here to headline the Pyramid in June.”
The upcoming slot will mark a return to the site for Young, as he previously headlined the Pyramid Stage in 2009. That appearance came after he was scheduled to do so 12 years earlier, only to be forced to pull out through an injury. His 2009 set ended with an extended ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’ and a cover of The Beatles’ ‘A Day In The Life’.
It has not been clarified what the exact “error in the information” refers to, and further details about what to expect from Young’s upcoming set remain unknown.
Other rumoured headliners include Olivia Rodrigo, Sam Fender, The 1975, Taylor Swift and Stevie Wonder. The full line-up for the festival is usually shared in March.
Last November, tickets for Glastonbury 2025 sold out in just 32 minutes, with the festival making use of a new queuing system for tickets.
For those still looking to get tickets, re-sale tickets are usually made available in the spring, and the full line-up usually drops shortly before then. These re-sale options, however, tend to sell out quickly, too. It was reported towards the end of 2024 that coach and ticket re-sale bundles sold out in just 18 minutes and general re-sale tickets sold out in 22 minutes for the 2025 edition.
The upcoming instalment will mark the last before Glastonbury takes a fallow year in 2026. Visit here for more information on how to get tickets to Glastonbury, pricing information and more.
