The Main Square Festival is an annual international music festival organized by Live Nation which takes place in the first week-end of July in Arras, France.
Created in 2004 by France Leduc Productions, the festival rose to one of the major music events of the country, attracting worldwide famous bands and stars like Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Placebo, Muse, Indochine, and Pearl Jam.
2004
The first edition of the Main Square Festival took place on 3 July 2004 on the Grand-Place d'Arras. Gomm performed during the opening act and the headliner was Placebo.[1] 15,000 spectators were present.[2]
2005
In 2005, Kyo & Sum 41 were the headliners on 3 July. This edition gathered 9,000 spectators.[2]
The 2007 edition took place on 30 June and 1 July. The line-up was mainly composed of French artists, including headliners Indochine and Tryo, but also Ayọ, The Sunshiners, Air & Peter von Poehl.
On 14 August, Live Nation organized another concert on the Grand-Place d'Arras. The entertainment company brought American heavy metal band Metallica for a show that lasted over two hours.[4]
2009
In 2009, the festival took place from 2 to 5 July. The four-day-festival was headlined by Coldplay, Kanye West, Placebo and Lenny Kravitz. Despite the prestigious line-up, the tickets were tough to sell. The 4-day pass cost 175€. A few days before the festival, the organizers decided to apply a 40% discount on the tickets.[2]
The 2010 edition is the first that was held at the Citadelle d'Arras, a UNESCO listed site. The capacity of the new venue is doubled and a new stage is added.
On 9 July 2010, Live Nation produced a show which featured Prince, Larry Graham et Mint Condition. 22 000 tickets were sold for the show.[5]
2011
The second edition at the Citadelle d'Arras is known as one of the best pop rock lineup of the festival. The three-day festival gathered around 100 000 spectators during the three days.[2]
The 2012 edition took place from 29 June to 1 July 2012. This edition gathered 25% less spectators than the previous one (75,000). The line-up was criticized for being too "pop".[2]
The 2022 edition took place from 30 June to 3 July 2022, with four days of festival. The headline acts were DJ Snake, Sting, Black Eyed Peas, and Twenty One Pilots.[15] The Pixies were originally scheduled to play on 2 July but they cancelled due to a Covid-19 infection in the group. They were replaced by French band Inspecteur Cluzo.[16]
2023
The 2023 edition took place from 30 June to July 2 2023, going back to a three-day-format. The organisation increased the prices of the tickets, three-day passes went from 129€ in 2022 to 155€ in 2023.[17] The line-up included artists such as Aya Nakamura, David Guetta, Macklemore, Maroon 5, John Butler, Kungs, Tiakola.[18]
2024
In 2024, the Main Square Festival will celebrate its 20th anniversary. However, the 2024 edition will not be the 20th as two editions were cancelled in 2020 and 2021.
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