Byron Bay Bluesfest

Byron Bay Bluesfest was an Australian music festival held over the Easter long weekend in the Byron Bay region of New South Wales. It began in 1990 at the Arts Factory as the East Coast Annual Blues Festival and was later known as the East Coast International Blues & Roots Music Festival. The event presented blues, roots and a broad range of other musical genres. The festival subsequently moved through several locations, including Belongil Fields and Red Devil Park, before Byron Events Farm at Tyagarah became its final home. It also hosted the Boomerang program, a festival within the festival that showcased Indigenous performers and music, art and culture. The 2020 and 2021 editions were cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic, before Bluesfest returned in 2022. In August 2024, festival director Peter Noble announced that the 2025 event would be the last, but organisers announced a 2026 return during the 2025 festival. The 2026 event was cancelled less than three weeks before it was due to begin, and the two Bluesfest entities entered liquidation.