Splendour In The Grass is on fire at the moment, announcing a generally well received lineup for their triumphant return to Byron Bay, and selling out tickets in a record time of under an hour.
But as organisers this morning announced a whole slew of sideshows, there was one notable absence – Azealia Banks.
The 20-year-old rapper from Harlem, New York, shot to fame earlier this year off the back of her viral sensation ‘212’, and had been booked at major music festivals around the world on the back of the success online of just that song.
But despite high praise for her appearances at Coachella in California last week, Banks and her management have decided it would be better for the young rapper to focus on her upcoming debut album Broke With Expensive Taste rather than jet set around the world.
Broke With Expensive Taste is scheduled for release in September on Interscope, after she left XL Recordings, the home of Adele, at the start of this year citing conflicting creative visions.
Over the weekend Banks pulled out of numerous festival commitments, scratching almost all of her June, July, and August festival dates. Banks has thus far cancelled more than a dozen festival commitments in Europe and the UK, with Reading and Leeds the only festival commitment her management have decided to keep.
Speaking to NME, her management said that Banks “will be performing at the Radio 1 Hackney Weekender and Reading & Leeds Festivals this summer, but has unfortunately had to cancel her remaining festival appearances due to recording commitments. Her October UK headline tour will still go ahead as scheduled”.”
Which doesn’t sound good for Splendour In The Grass which falls at the end of July, right in the middle of Bank’s self-imposed black out period.
There’s been no official word from Splendour In The Grass organisers regarding Banks yet, but if she has pulled out they may be looking for a replacement before they announce anything.
We’ll keep you posted if we hear anything.
UPDATE: Azealia Bank’s has confirmed she will honour her booking for Splendour In The Grass 2012
