The highly anticipated Hello Sunshine Festival 2025, which was set to make its return in Melbourne and debut on the Gold Coast, has been officially cancelled.
The family-friendly event was slated to feature a star-studded line-up, headlined by Stone Temple Pilots alongside acts such as Smash Mouth, Wolfmother, Kasey Chambers, Rogue Traders, and Drapht. The festival also promised entertainment for younger audiences, including a Bluey live show with meet-and-greet sessions, as well as performances by Lenny Pearce and Whistle & Trick.
Scheduled to take place at Melbourne’s Caribbean Gardens on March 1 and the Gold Coast’s Broadwater Parklands on March 8, the festival’s sudden cancellation was confirmed in a notice posted to the official Hello Sunshine website:
“Hello Sunshine Festival 2025 will no longer be proceeding as scheduled on March 1st (Melbourne) and March 8th (Gold Coast).
All ticket holders will be contacted directly with further details regarding refunds.
Please direct any unanswered queries to info@hellosunshinefest.com.au and a team member will reply as soon as practicable.
We thank you for your understanding throughout this tough time.”
In a candid TikTok video captioned “super horrible news,” co-founder Danny Rants revealed that insufficient ticket sales had forced the event’s cancellation. While early sales were promising, numbers declined toward the end of 2024 and failed to rebound.
Addressing why both events could not proceed, Danny explained that the Gold Coast leg had struggled more significantly in ticket sales, while rising costs rendered the Melbourne event unsustainable. “Cancelling it, we’re losing hundreds of thousands of dollars, but it’s better than what it could have been,” he stated. Describing the situation as “fucked,” Danny admitted the future of the Hello Sunshine Festival is now uncertain.
For fans of Stone Temple Pilots, there is a silver lining. The band has added two shows to their Australian tour: Melbourne’s Palais Theatre on March 2 and the Gold Coast’s HOTA on March 8.
Ticket holders for the cancelled festival are being assured of refunds, with organisers thanking attendees for their understanding during what they described as a “tough time.”