Reading & Leeds boss discusses chance of Rage Against The Machine returning

30 August 2023, 12:52

Reading and Leeds stages with Rage Against The Machine's Zack de la Rocha inset. Picture: 1. Jo Hale/Redferns/Getty 2. Chris Saunders/Avalon/Getty Images 3. Katja Ogrin/Redferns/Getty

By Jenny Mensah

The legendary US rap rockers were forced to cancel their headline set in 2022 due to Zack de la Rocha's leg injury.

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Reading and Leeds closed its doors last week, but festival boss Melvin Benn is already talking about plans for the event next year.

Back in 2022, Rage Against The Machine were forced to cancel their headline slot at the twin festivals due to a leg injury sustained by their frontman Zack de la Rocha.

Taking to social media, the Killing In The Name outfit said: "Per medical guidance, Zack de la Rocha has been advised that the August and September 2022 UK and European leg of the Rage Against The Machine tour cannot proceed. It is with great disappointment that we announce this cancellation."

They added: "We are so sorry to all of our fans who have waited years to see us and hope to Rage again soon."

Now, quizzed if Rage Against The Machine fans can expect them to make good on their cancelled set, Benn told NME: "It’s not an agenda item at the moment, let’s put it that way."

He added: "Rage are a US-based act and would very rarely do one-off shows, so it would need to fit in to a lot more scheduling."

While it's not great news for Rage fans, Benn has said Lewis Capaldi, who cancelled his headline slot this year to work on his mental health has an "open offer" to return, but he would rather he focused on his health.

He told the outlet: "I think there will always be an open offer, but at the same time the only thing that needs to be thought about is Lewis’ health. We certainly wouldn’t be having a discussion prior to Lewis’ health being right."

Leeds Festival draws to a close with sets from The Killers and The 1975

This year's festival saw headline performances from Sam Fender, The Killers, Foals, Imagine Dragons, Billie Eilish and The 1975, but Benn also teased that they already have "one of the headliners confirmed" and they've headlined the festival before.

Quizzed how often online rumours are true for festival headliners, he revealed: "It is extraordinary where people get their information from. Some of the rumours are pretty decent, but not always."