AJ Maddah Says He Has Heard "Conflicting Reports" About Whether Download Festival Will Return To Australia In 2020

In a tweet earlier this week, former Festival promoter AJ Maddah cast doubt on whether Download Festival will return to Australia in 2020.

When asked of his opinion on the heavy music festival’s return, Maddah responded by saying that he’s not sure about the future of the festival and that he’d been “hearing all sorts of conflicting reports,” adding, “no offers seem to have gone out for next year as of yet.”

Not sure John. Hearing all sorts of conflicting reports. No offers seem to have gone out for next year as of yet.

— AJ (@iamnotshouting) July 7, 2019

Although Maddah is not directly involved with the festival, he has a history and close ties with the metal scene in Australia.

Download Festival is locked in and set to return to the UK next year, taking place from 12th June to 14th June, 2020. However, there is yet to be any confirmation in regards to the 2020 Australian festival leg.

A spokesperson for the Parramatta Park Trust – the site of Download Festival Sydney 2019 – tells Music Feeds that while “Download was a great success as part of the 2018-19 Crescent Summer Series in Parramatta Park” they have “no news on 2020 plans”.

2018 was the first time Download Festival made its way to Australia and, earlier this year, the festival held its second instalment.

The inaugural festival in 2018 saw the likes of Korn, Prophets of Rage, Limp Bizkit, Mastodon and more head to our shores. The lineup however drew criticism from fans due to its lack of female artists on the bill and fans feeling as though it was lacklustre compared to Download’s European lineups.

Maddah was quick to defend the festival, saying that fans needed to give it a “chance to grow”.

The 2019 festival lineup saw Ozzy Osbourne (before he dropped out due to ongoing health issues), Judas Priest, Slayer and more.

Music Feeds has reached out to promotors Live Nation for comment on whether Download will be returning to Australia in 2020, but have not yet received a response at the time of writing.

We will update this story as it develops.