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Financial Challenges Force Postponement of Slovak Festival
The organisers of Slovakia`s Rock Pod Kameňom have announced that the 2026 edition of the festival will not take place next week as scheduled. The festival will instead be moved to a new date, which will be announced once all necessary arrangements have been finalised.
In a statement, the festival team cited the increasing economic challenges of staging large-scale live music events. Organisers said they had invested heavily in marketing campaigns, artist announcements, promotional offers and ticket sales initiatives in an effort to ensure the event`s viability, but ultimately decided that proceeding under the current conditions would be financially irresponsible.
The organisers highlighted rising costs across all areas of festival production, including artist fees, staging, sound and lighting, transport, security, medical services, insurance, staffing and music licensing. They also noted that many artists and agencies now require substantial advance payments, with some demanding full performance fees before the event takes place.
Rather than risk financial instability, the festival team said it had chosen to postpone the event in order to preserve the quality, safety and standards associated with the festival.
Founded in 2003, Rock Pod Kamenom has grown into one of Slovakia`s leading rock and metal festivals. Held in Belá nad Cirochou in eastern Slovakia, the event has hosted a wide range of international and domestic acts over the past two decades and the postponed 2026 event would have marked the festival`s 24th edition.
The 2026 festival was scheduled to take place from 25–27 June and featured one of the strongest line-ups in the event`s history. Artists announced for the edition included Black Eyed Peas, Europe, Helloween, Within Temptation, Pendulum, Mastodon, Steel Panther, Drowning Pool, Sonata Arctica and Korpiklaani, alongside leading Slovak and Czech acts such as Horkýze Slíze, Iné Kafe, Konflikt and Helenine Oci.