Photo credit: Owen Ela
Roots Picnic returned for its 18th year at the Mann Center in Fairmount Park over the weekend and unfortunately started on the wrong foot. The festival’s opening day was full of delays, confusion and growing calls for refunds from frustrated attendees, Stereogum reported.
Originally scheduled to open its gates at noon on Saturday, May 31st, organizers pushed the start time to 1 p.m. and blamed it on weather-related issues. However, a follow-up social media update informed festival goers that the gates would instead open at 2 p.m. which read, “The picnic grounds need a little TLC after the recent storms.”
In reality, many attendees reported that lines didn’t begin moving until around 3:30 p.m., with some unable to enter the venue until hours later. The delays prompted backlash online, with concertgoers demanding explanations and reimbursement.
The Roots Picnic’s Instagram account and Questlove, co-founder of The Roots and festival co-curator, issued public apologies and explanations. Questlove acknowledged the situation candidly in a post.
“Aight—— I know today wasn’t “ideal” for The Roots Picnic in this 18th year of 2025. (This year has been particularly challenging to say the least),” he wrote. “Heavy rain from May 30th into the morning of the 31st caused significant damage (midnight to 7am). We nearly canceled The Picnic because conditions were unsafe for everyone involved.”
“Ultimately, we chose to take extra time to repair the site to ensure safety for all ticket holders, which is why there was a 3hr delay,” Questlove explained and mentioned efforts to bring in materials, including mulch, to stabilize the site.
Roots Picnic took to Instagram to also issue an explanation and apology for the delays.
“In an abundance of caution, we had to delay doors opening, resulting in the lines to get into the festival,” the post read. “Please understand safety will always be our number 1 priority.
Despite the rocky start, adjustments were made to the schedule so all performers could still appear, including Maxwell, Latto and others. The 2025 lineup included big artists such as Meek Mill, Lenny Kravitz, Miguel, Kaytranada, GloRilla and more.
Both Roots Picnic and Questlove concluded their statements by thanking fans for their patience. “This year has shown our ability to adapt and overcome challenges, much like we did in past years.”
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