Miley Cyrus, The Raconteurs, Santana, The Lumineers withdraw from Woodstock 50 line-up

Several Hollywood stars who were all set to perform at the Woodstock 50 Festival which was scheduled to be held in August, have pulled out of the event. According to Variety, headliner Miley Cyrus, along with other musicians like The Raconteurs, The Lumineers and original Woodstock 1969 performers John Sebastian and Country Joe McDonald, all revealed last night publicly that they’re not performing. [caption id=“attachment_1252827” align=“alignnone” width=“940”] Miley Cyrus performs “Wrecking Ball” at the 41st American Music Awards in Los Angeles, California November 24, 2013. REUTERS[/caption] Before the above-mentioned names, the others to drop out of the concert were Jay-Z and the Dead & Co., as well as John Fogerty, who also confirmed about their cancellations. While the status of the famous band Imagine Dragons and The Killers, who were roped in to perform the last two headline-level acts, is still there on the list. Regardless of all the cancellations made by the stars, sources told Variety that the festival is moving ahead as a one-day event, and so far there are four or five acts, including the Zombies, who have agreed to perform. A source also said that a broadcast partner has been contacted and asked to budget out a single day’s performance. As for now the festival remains scheduled to take place at the Merriweather Post Pavilion outside Baltimore the weekend of 16-18 August There is only one group which has kept their faith on the festival and that is the Zombies, who have confirmed their presence. “I’ve always believed it would happen, which might sound kooky, but we’re at a messed-up moment in time right now and the spirit of Woodstock is something that we need,” manager Cindy da Silva told Variety. “And also, the tenacity of that team has been incredible. If this was any other festival I’d say ‘Give it up already,’” she continues, “but maybe the way it’s happening is right: It shouldn’t be for profit, it should be about peace and love and music and charity and people coming together. If it turns out the way it looks like it should, I do believe it’ll be a powerful event that could be a moment of change. Maybe there’s a reason it hasn’t gone away yet.” Reportedly, it is been said that the festival will be “free,” like everything else involved with Woodstock 50, the details are absolutely vague: The “free” name tagged with the festival seems loosely tied to the concept of a benefit concert, though it’s unclear which charitable organisations may partner with the fest or whether attendees would simply be “encouraged to donate” or not.