Glastonbury SLAMMED as Avril Lavigne performs on 'overcrowded' stage (2024)

Glastonbury fans have slammed festival organisers after they allowed 'dangerous overcrowding' during Avril Lavigne's set on Sunday.

The Complicated hitmaker, 39, drew a huge crowd of 70,000 people, including Cara Delevingneand Anya Taylor-Joy, to the Other Stage for her debut at the summer festival.

While hoards of festival goers rocked along to the pop punkers set, fans branded American R&B singer SZA's headline performance as the worst ever after a dismal turnout and technical issues plagued her set over on the Pyramid stage.

And the scheduling mishap has left fans furious as they took to Twitter to express how they felt unsafe at Avril's set due to the crowds and suggested she should have been playing on the main stage instead.

Fans wrote: 'Dangerous amount of people there, shape up Glastonbury for next year.... Get your headliners better arranged.'

Glastonbury fans have slammed festival organisers as 70,000 people watch Avril Lavigne at 'dangerously overcrowded' stage while SZA performs to empty crowds as they argue there were MAJOR scheduling faults

While hoards of festival goers rocked along to the pop punkers set, fans branded American R&B singer SZA's headline performance as the worst ever after a dismal turnout and technical issues plagued her set over on the Pyramid stage

'the avril lavigne crowd is a joke… just taken an entire hour to walk like sardines from one side of the stage to the other. why the fuck is she not on pyramid? they keep putting people on the wrong stages it’s unsafe';

'HUGE crowds for Avril Lavigne. The Old Railway Line is gridlocked with people trying to get close enough just to listen. Routes closed. Who could've foreseen this?

'(Well, everyone except Emily Eavis & her team) We all called it the moment the schedule was released.'

One mother penned: 'My daughter said it was scary watching Avril Lavigne on the Other stage as the crowd was to big.

'She goes every year and said this is the first time she was worried. Definitely Glasto made some wrong decisions this year.'

Others added: 'Avril lavigne should've been pyramid tho, never been so squeezed in a crowd'; 'Avril lavigne set was so unsafe #Glasto please consider our safety more! @glastonbury'.

Read More Avril Lavigne is cheered on by Cara Delevingne and Anya Taylor-Joy during her Glastonbury set

'Yet again some really bad scheduling from Glasto!!!! Putting Avril Lavigne on a dangerously crowded Other Stage, blocking paths to campsites etc while the Pyramid looks like this….So much audience data is available I don't know why this keeps happening!'

Even from home viewers thought the set looked crowded as they wrote: 'i'm just catching up with avril lavigne's glasto set and b****y h**l she could've, should've been one of the pyramid headliners'

'Avril Lavigne should've headlined Glasto on the Sunday. Pop punk will never perish'; 'Avril Lavigne wasn't a headliner at Glasto? Did someone explain Millennials to the organisers?'

'Extra weird when we keep hearing newsstories on both BBC & Sky about how Glastonbury is struggling to get female headliners and they actually get Avril Lavigne and do this!';

The Complicated hitmaker, 39, drew a huge crowd of 70,000 people, including Cara Delevingne and Anya Taylor-Joy , to the Other Stage for her debut at the summer festival

Meanwhile SZA struggled to draw a crowd despite being the Sunday headliner

And the scheduling mishap has left fans furious as they took to Twitter to express how they felt unsafe at Avril's set due to the crowds and suggested she should have been playing on the main stage instead

Others shared snaps of the crowds trying to get to the stage as they questioned why she wasn't put on the Pyramid stage

'I gave SZA a good hour but not a headliner imo. Compared to Elton last year I felt SZA as Sunday headliner didn't end Glasto on the high it should have. Avril Lavigne on the other hand...';

'The football didn't seem to stop the 80000 watching Avril Lavigne. Blame the Glasto scheduling. Avril should have had the legends slot and then Monae might have performed to 40000 instead of 4000. Never seen the Other stage so full.'

Avril's popularity wasn't the only artist festival organisers seemed to under estimate after entry to the Sugababes set was shut down by security on Friday.

The West Holts stage, which has capacity for 35,000 people, had to operate a 'one in one out' system to avoid a crush aspolice restricted entry to the gig to stop more people arriving due to safety concerns.

Read More Was this year's Glastonbury the most underwhelming yet?

Taking to Twitter once again, fans wrote: 'SZA should’ve definitely swapped with the Sugababes at Glasto. Some really odd stage and set times this year'.

'Utter stupid behaviour from glasto putting Avril on the other stage and Sugababes on West Holts please use brains when booking artists I beg!'

'They've closed the entire area around the West Holts stage because of the amount of people who want to see Sugababes. Same happened for their Avalon stage set in 2022.

'It really needs to be more widely acknowledged that they're one of the topper most adored groups of their era'.

'SZA (17th most streamed Spotify artist in the world) having a sparse crowd as the #Glastonbury headliner, while Sugababes and Avril Lavigne were over-capacity on smaller stages is a great illustration of how streaming doesn't equate to fans. I actually feel quite sorry for SZA...'

Avril's popularity wasn't the only artist festival organisers seemed to under estimate after entry to the Sugababes set was shut down by security on Friday

The West Holts stage had to operate a 'one in one out' system to avoid a crush as police restricted entry to the gig to stop more people arriving due to safety concerns

Revellers were seen squeezing through a packed crowd to see The Sugababes on the West Holts stage which only has capacity for 35,000 people

Taking to Twitter once again, fans wrote: ' SZA should’ve definitely swapped with the Sugababes at Glasto. Some really odd stage and set times this year'

As well as overcrowded stages, the festival has come under fire this yearafter a slew of artists were hit with technical problems that left them sounding 'awful'.

On top of this, artists including Camila Cabello, Dua Lipa and Coldplay have been called out for allegedly miming.

There's been frenzied guessing game as to who is to blame for the issues, with questions raised as to whether Glastonbury Festival's technical team is at fault or the BBC for the broadcast.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, fans penned: 'Why is the sound so awful on every single bit of Glastonbury that I've watched (apart from the Sugababes). Is it bad there? Or is it the TV/BBC mics/sound?';

'Glastonbury is one of the biggest music festivals in the world, yet their sound engineers can't seem to get much right this year? Bad mics, in-ear monitor situations, drowned out vocals. Or is this just the TV coverage from the BBC?';

'After watching the #BBC #Glastonbury2024 footage over the weekend, the most important conclusion is that the sound quality wasn't very good across the board, and truly awful in some cases. Question is, was it that bad on site as well or was this just a tv thing?'

Dua Lipa was the first to be accusedof lip-syncing by those watching coverage of the festival on the BBC on Friday night.

One watcher wrote on X:'Imagine paying all that money to go Glastonbury to stand there and watch Dua Lipa mime the song and not even sing it. How bad.'

Another wrote online: 'Dua Lipa delivering a Top of the Pops mime set'.

A third said: 'Dua Lipa has some decent catchy tunes, but I'm fairly sure she's lip syncing. Sounds like a live vocal, but just not convinced she's singing it live 'right now'.'

Thousands of festival goers camped out to see artists such as Dua Lipa and Coldplay

Dua Lipa was the first to be accused of lip-syncing by those watching coverage of the festival on the BBC on Friday night

The same issue occurred with Coldplay 's record breaking set on Saturday night, which saw frontman Chris Martin wow crowds after he brought on an old friend to perform with them

However, she set the record straight after her set and insisted miming is not something she ever does.

'I don't mime,' said theGrammyAward-winner as she toasted her headline success with her actor boyfriend Callum Turner, 34, in an exclusive bar at the Worthy Farm festival site.

The same issue occurred withColdplay's record breaking set on Saturday night, which saw frontman Chris Martin wow crowds after he brought on an old friend to perform with them.

Michael J. Fox arrived on stage in his wheelchair to play the guitar during Fix You and Humankind.

However some cynical viewers have suggested that Chris may have been miming the words to his songs, rather than singing.

One wrote: 'Tons of miming and backing tracks being used in this Coldplay performance. Bass player in danger of being made redundant.'

A second said: 'There's a fair amount of blagging and miming going on here... Loads of tracks running in the background.'

While a third commented: 'The people who were giving off about Taylor Swift's band miming or using backing tracks would get a big surprise if they saw Coldplay's input list.'

Another to have come under the scrutiny of eagle eyed fans is Camila Cabello, who put on a racy performance at her set on Saturday.

As she took to the stage in a busty top and hot pants, one of Camila's backup dancers, who was dressed as an animal, could be seen cooling her down by rubbing an ice lolly all over her body.

While viewers' eyes popped out their sockets at the steamy performance, some couldn't help but notice something off, accusing the singer of miming her songs.

One person posted on X: 'Camila Cabello miming her way through her set, nice #Glastonbury #Glastonbury2024'.

A second wrote: 'You were s**te you lip syncing fake - Camilla Cabello'.

There was also other complaints about the quality of the sound, with Cyndi Lauper's performance on Saturday beset by problems.

Shania Twain suffered the same fate as she took to the stage on Sunday. The iconic singer, 58, could be seen struggling with her ear piece as she seemed to have trouble with her pitch

SZA's show also struggled to draw in the huge crowds that were on display during Coldplay 's headline slot the previous evening, with the small numbers noticeable in BBC's coverage

There was also other complaints about the quality of the sound, with Cyndi Lauper 's performance on Saturday beset by problems

Festival goers were left struggling to hear the Girls Just Wanna Have Fun singer's vocals as her voice was drowned out by rumbling bass.

After a few songs, Cyndi, 71, performed Rocking Chair and she seemed to struggle with her pitch and timing.

Shania Twain suffered the same fateas she took to the stage on Sunday.

The iconic singer, 58, could be seen struggling with her ear piece as she seemed to have trouble with her pitch and timing.

Shania made a very dramatic entrance alongside drag queens and dancers, before quickly finding herself beset with problems.

Horrified fans rushed to X, formerly Twitter, to slam the behind the scenes crew as they felt nothing but sympathy for Shania's moment being ruined.

Read More Glastonbury performer Michael Kiwanuka suffers his 'worst nightmare' as he endures technical issues

They wrote: 'Utterly horrific sound mix on Shania!': 'The sound at Glastonbury has been terrible on BBC, Cyndi yesterday and now Shania? Maybe BBC just hates gay icons': 'Sound is pretty rubbish for Shania': ''Looks like Shania knows something is wrong with the sound'.

Wrapping up a weekend of sound issues was SZA's headline gig on Sunday night.

The American hitmaker, 34, performed on Worthy Farm's iconic Pyramid Stage, but the show sparked complaints from viewers, who slammed her 'awful' mic problems.

SZA's show also struggled to draw in the huge crowds that were on display during Coldplay's headline slot the previous evening, as thousands of fans abandoned the show after tuning into England's Euro 2024match.

As SZA kicked off her headline slot, viewers were quick to complain about her sound problems, with some claiming it sounded like she was 'singing into a fan.'

Posts on X included: 'Why are the backing singers crystal clear and SZA sounds like she's singing through one of these???'

'Me after hyping SZA up to my mum and dad for months and then her sounding like she's singing into a fan;' 'Fix SZA's mic RIGHT NOW;'

'Is something wrong with SZA's mic? I can't understand a word she's saying rn;' 'Who the hell is sabotaging SZA's mic at Glastonbury????;'

MailOnline has contacted the BBC and Glastonbury Festival for comment.

Glastonbury SLAMMED as Avril Lavigne performs on 'overcrowded' stage (2024)

FAQs

What was the biggest crowd at Glastonbury Pyramid stage? ›

Levellers (1994)

Although the Levellers first performed at Glastonbury in 1990 on the Wango Riley stage, their most iconic performance was when they headlined the Pyramid Stage in 1994, attracting the largest turn out to date.

Who has played the pyramid stage at Glastonbury? ›

Whatever the intangible quality that puts a performer on Glastonbury Festival's most iconic stage, it's led to quite a line-up, featuring The Rolling Stones, Radiohead, Oasis, Jay-Z, Franz Ferdinand, U2, The Prodigy, Joan Baez, Pulp, Tom Jones, Neil Diamond, Shakira, Johnny Cash, Gorillaz, Dizzee Rascal, Paul Weller, ...

Does Avril Lavigne have children? ›

Avril Lavigne, a Canadian singer-songwriter, does not have any biological children as she has never given birth. However, she is a stepmother to her husband's two children from a previous relationship.

Who holds the record for the biggest crowd at Glastonbury? ›

While the number of attendees is sometimes swollen by gatecrashers, a record of 300,000 people was set at the 1994 festival, headlined by the Levellers, who performed on The Pyramid Stage.

Which artist has performed the most at Glastonbury? ›

Van Morrison has played the Pyramid Stage a whopping 8 times. His first appearance was in 1982.

Has Dolly Parton ever played Glastonbury? ›

2014 - Dolly Parton

There's more to Dolly than 9 To 5 as the country superstar proved - how about Jolene, Islands In The Stream and Here You Come Again?

What was the loudest performance in Glastonbury history? ›

#2 The Killers (2019) Mr Brightside

Playing at the last Glastonbury Festival this iconic performance has now set the record for the loudest ever set with Brandon Flowers and co hitting 106 decibels.

Has anyone headlined Glastonbury twice? ›

Bringing up the rear are The Cure, who headlined in 1986, 1990, 1995 and 2019. Causing confusion is Elvis Costello, who has headlined in 1984 (as the Saturday night "special guest", 1987 and 1994 with his band The Attractions, but also topped the bill in 1989 with a solo set.

Which band has headlined Glastonbury four times? ›

Love them or hate them, Coldplay are part of the Glastonbury furniture. After making their debut in 1999, Chris Martin and co first headlined the main stage in 2002, along with Rod Stewart and the Stereophonics, and now have a record four Pyramid Stage headline slots under their belts.

Do Glastonbury artists get paid? ›

In an interview with Somerset Live, Bestival organiser Rob Da Bank revealed that Glastonbury's budget is under £500,000 per headliner. He said: "They cap their budget and even the headliners don't get paid more than 500 grand, I think, which is cheap for some of the headliners - and they've had a lot of them."

What gender is Avril Lavigne? ›

At 17 years old, Lavigne was the youngest female soloist to have a number-one album on the UK Albums Chart at that time. She was nominated for five Grammy Awards. Complicated, Sk8r Boi and I'm With You were all number one songs on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40.

Is Adam Levine related to Avril Lavigne? ›

But to set the record straight, we can 110 percent confirm to you that Avril Lavigne and Adam Levine are not related in any way. While their last names are pronounced the same way, the spellings are slightly different. Also, Avril grew up in Ontario, Canada and Adam grew up in Los Angeles, Calif.

Does Avril Lavigne speak French? ›

Avril Lavigne has mastered French after spending a year in Paris. The Sk8ter Boi hitmaker, who is French Canadian, admits she had always promised her father she'd learn the language and last year she relocated to the City of Lights so she'd have to speak it daily.

What was the biggest crowd at Glastonbury Levellers? ›

The Levellers – Pyramid Stage, 1994

Without a steel fence to keep the gatecrashers away, Glasto was officially free and The Levellers played to what is reported to have been the festival's largest-ever crowd to date, estimated at 300,000. Imagine how many dogs were tied up at the gate.

How many people go to Glastonbury Pyramid Stage? ›

Last night (June 30), American singer-songwriter SZA headlined the Pyramid stage of Glastonbury. As the biggest set at one of the world's largest festivals, with a capacity of 120,000 people, booking a slot on the Pyramid is one of the most desired jobs for many artists.

Who had the biggest crowd at Glastonbury in 2024? ›

This was almost McCartney and Elton John levels of crowd density. Coldplay brought all the lasers, fireworks and flashing multi-coloured wristbands but their greatest special effect was the crowd itself, singing at the top of its collective voice beneath a clear Glastonbury night sky.

How much did Coldplay get paid for Glastonbury? ›

The exact fees paid to this year's headliners - Coldplay, Dua Lipa and SZA - have not been disclosed, but it was previously revealed that Coldplay were paid £200,000 for one of their headline sets.

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