The Lollapalooza Israel rock festival planned for next summer appears to have collapsed just months after it was launched, and all information about it has been removed from theofficial website of Lollapalooza, the US-based corporate concert franchise.
Israel’s Ynet reported in Hebrew that:
As had already been reported in December, many difficulties cropped up over the last few months in recruiting the famous artists to take part in the festival, and the production had also run into logistical and financial difficulties in its attempt to produce three consecutive days of performances at Hayarkon Park in Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv’s “HaYarkon Park,” notably, is built on the ruins of the Palestinian village of Jarisha. Ynet said that the Israeli promoters, Plug Productions, posted a message on their Facebook page:
Lollapalooza Israel removed from official websiteDear friends, we really don’t like to discuss gossip, but we will do it this time: you don’t have to take seriously everything that’s written on Ynet. If you haven’t heard it from us, you haven’t heard it at all.
This screenshot right at the top of this post shows the official Lollapalooza website last month. Note “Lollapalooza Israel” in the top left corner, and the big announcement at bottom right.
A [link](http://www.lollapalooza.com/news-events/lolla-news/2012/08/04/lolla-israel/ that used to lead to an announcement about Lollapalooza Israel now returns “Page Not Found.”
Lollapalooza founder raised money for Israeli army
Lollapalooza founder and Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, a pro-Israel activist,announced the festival to great fanfare last August.
Lollapalooza is held annually in Chicago’s Grant Park under a sweetheart deal that noted music critic Jim DeRogatis has severely criticized. Along with Brazil and Chile, Israel was to be part of the franchise’s international expansion.
During Israel’s 2008-2009 massacre in Gaza, Farrell performed at a benefit in New York to raise money for Israeli soldiers. But he made no mention of his Zionist politics in interviews touting the festival, instead emphasizing Tel Aviv’s marketing image as a “party town.”
Now it looks like the party’s over for Farrell and his effort to use Lollapalooza to whitewash Israel’s image.
The reports of the difficulties the Israeli festival had recruiting international stars will be seen as a victory for the Palestinian campaign for cultural boycott of Israel. In recent years, an increasing number of prominent international artists have heeded the Palestinian call.
