Electric Zoo Class Action Says Night-One Cancellation, Overbooking Violated Ticket Terms

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The organizers of the Electric Zoo Music Festival face a proposed class action lawsuit after the first night of the “nightmare” event on Randall’s Island in New York was canceled with little to no notice, or refunds, for thousands of attendees. 

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The 17-page lawsuit alleges organizers of the annual three-day electronic dance music festival—EZ Festivals LLC, Avant Gardner LLC and Made Event LLC—violated the terms of their ticket contracts with customers when they canceled night one of Electric Zoo on Friday, September 1 “without notice and without a reasonable explanation.” 

The suit alleges that two days later, the companies violated their own ticket terms again by denying entry to Electric Zoo for roughly 7,000 buyers because, according to reports, the companies sold at least 7,000 tickets more than the capacity of the venue. 

“While eager and excited music fans were prepared for what was supposed to be a truly special musical experience, they were met only with chaos, cancellations, stampedes, and rejection at the gate despite having and paying for valid Sunday tickets,” the case, filed on September 13 in New York, states. 

In an Instagram post the morning of September 1, the defendants blamed the abrupt cancellation on “global supply chain disruptions” having caused “unexpected delays” that prevented construction of the main stage in time for the event, the case relays. However, the lawsuit claims that “certain insiders” have called foul on the defendants’ explanation for the cancellation,” alleging the parties instead “started planning very late in the game” and failed to reserve trucks and equipment and build the stage on time. 

Then, on Sunday, festivalgoers were, “perhaps more egregiously,” left to “languish in heatwave [sic] for hours after being greeted by never ending lines to enter the festival,” only to be denied entry because the venue was “oversold and overcrowded,” the lawsuit shares. 

“The decision to prohibit entry led to chaos and people storming the gates to get into the festival,” the case reads. 

According to the suit, the defendants are also the owners and operators of New York City venues heavily promoted as after-party spots for Electric Zoo, including the Brooklyn Mirage. The lawsuit alleges the companies “intentionally delayed” their announcement of the night one cancellation in order to continue selling after-party tickets. 

The outrage over the problems at this year’s Electric Zoo Music Festival had some attendees referring to the event on social media as “Fyre Festival 2.0,” the complaint notes, adding that New York City Mayor Eric Adams has said the city intends to take action against the festival’s organizers. 

“During a September 5, 2023 NYPD briefing, Mayor Adams said ‘[i]t’s unfortunate that the organizers wanted to turn our city into a zoo, and we were not going to allow that to happen. And we will be dealing with them in the next few days based on their behavior and actions.’” 

According to the complaint, ticket buyers have yet to receive refunds for the canceled first night of Electric Zoo or for being denied entry on Sunday, the final day of the festival. 

The lawsuit looks to cover all persons who bought tickets to the Friday and/or Sunday shows of the Electric Zoo Music Festival but did not attend either show. According to the complaint, this year’s Electric Zoo was slated to host an estimated 40,000 people.

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