Milwaukee Summerfest Postponed to September to Allow 'More Time to Distribute' COVID-19 Vaccine

"It would take longer to vaccinate the broader community than what our June 24 start date was going to allow," said Don Smiley, president and CEO of Summerfest's parent company

Summerfest. Photo: Alamy

Safety first.

The 53rd edition of the massive Summerfest (which was originally slated to kick off in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on June 24) has been postponed to three consecutive weekends in the fall, Sept. 2 to 4, 9 to 11 and 16 to 18.

The annual music festival, which promises to feature more than 1,000 performances across 12 stages along the Lake Michigan shoreline, has been rescheduled in efforts to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. In similar announcement posts shared on Instagram and Twitter, Summerfest organizers said they hope this time allows more prospective attendees the opportunity to receive the coronavirus vaccine ahead of the multi-day event.

"We are excited to get the live music industry back in action and to welcome fans back, but in order to allow healthcare professionals more time to distribute the vaccine, Summerfest 2021 will be held [in] September," they announced.

Summerfest. Alamy

On Instagram, Summerfest organizers shared similar sentiments, adding that, "There are promising developments surrounding the vaccine rollout."

Stars who will headline and perform throughout Summerfest are expected to be revealed "soon."

Don Smiley, president and CEO of Summerfest's parent company Milwaukee World Festival Inc., told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "The optimism is high given the vaccines that are out there, but we agreed that it would take longer to vaccinate the broader community than what our June 24 start date was going to allow."

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He continued, "From the health professionals that we've talked to in and out of Wisconsin, along with other government officials at the state and local level, we're encouraged that anyone who wants a vaccine by the summer will be able to get one."

As of last month, more than 400,000 people have lost their lives to COVID-19 related complications in the U.S. alone. The two vaccines approved to combat the coronavirus in the U.S., from Pfizer and Moderna, are both mRNA vaccines.

This is a new, but highly researched type of vaccine that teaches the cells to create an advanced spike protein that can fight off the spike protein from a particular virus, in this case COVID-19.

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