Since its 1999 Halloween weekend debut, the annual event has become a Halloween tradition to music fans, both locally and others who travel from around the world. Throughout Voodoo’s -year run, more than one million festival goers have gathered to see performances from about 2,000 artists. The event has also been twice nominated for Pollstar's Music Festival of the Year and in 2005, Voodoo founder Stephen Rehage and his team were presented with a key to the city, following the Voodoo 2005 post-Katrina event. Voodoo’s annual line-up traditionally features top-tier and innovative artists from a variety of musical genres. Highlights from the last 15 years have included performances from Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, Eminem, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Cure, Tiesto, Nine Inch Nails, Deadmau5, No Doubt, Ozzy Osbourne, The Black Keys, Neil Young, Green Day, KISS, Snoop Dogg, Duran Duran, R.E.M., My Chemical Romance, 50 Cent and 311. No event will be planned in 2020.
Creation and growth
Voodoo was first held as a single day event on October 30, 1999 at Tad Gormley Stadium in City Park. Planned and executed by Stephen Rehage, CEO of Rehage Entertainment, the festival consisted of three stages and a mix of local and national acts including headliners Wyclef Jean and Moby. As the U.S. festival market swelled, Voodoo continued its growth, increasing both the festival site and musically expanding with the addition of stages and performers. During its second year in 2000, Voodoo became to a two-day event and garnered international attention with a headlining performance from Eminem in support of his just-released three times platinum major studio debut The Slim Shady LP. In 2007, Voodoo expanded to a three-day event.
Originally scheduled for Halloween Weekend in New Orleans’ City Park, the Voodoo Music Experience was displaced by the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. While plans were in full swing to move forward with relocation to Memphis, Voodoo founder Stephen Rehage met with community leaders in New Orleans about the opportunity to move the event back home for one of its two days—as a tribute event for relief workers. Festival organizers and Memphis representatives alike agreed this was an amazing opportunity to increase the scope of the event.
The 2006 Voodoo Music Experience saw the debut of three distinct areas on six distinct stages within the festival’s landscape: Le Ritual, Le Flambeau and Le Carnival. Each of these areas was designed to uniquely showcase different sides of the personality of the festival and its New Orleans home: "Le Flambeau" features music and sounds consistent with the style of The Big Easy; "Le Ritual" features more mainstream music; and finally "Le Carnival" features indie bands, burlesque and circus acts. In 2007, Voodoo expanded to three days and broke all previous attendance records with an estimated 100,000+ fans in attendance. In April 2013, the Voodoo Music + Arts Experience announced an initial 15 acts to commemorate the 15th anniversary of Voodoo. The initial 15 acts include Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails, Calvin Harris, Bassnectar, Paramore, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Afrojack, Boys Noize, The Gaslight Anthem, Big Gigantic, How To Destroy Angels, Cults, Alkaline Trio, Desaparecidos and Robert DeLong. The 15th anniversary Voodoo celebration also marked the debut of City Park’s Festival Grounds, a new permanent home for Voodoo. Home to Voodoo since its 1999 debut—with the exception of Voodoo 2005 which was displaced by the city’s hurricane damage—New Orleans’ 1,300 acre City Park is the region’s principal recreation site that attracts over seven million visitors each year.
Line-ups
1999
The 1999 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held on October 31, 1999.
2000
The 2000 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 27–29, 2000.
2001
The 2001 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 26–28, 2001.
2002
The 2002 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 25–27, 2002.
2003
The 2003 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 31-November 1, 2003.
2004
The 2004 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 29–31, 2004.
2005
The 2005 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held on October 29–30, 2005 in New Orleans and Memphis.
2006
The 2006 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 28–29, 2006.
2007
The 2007 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 26–28, 2007.
2008
The 2008 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 24–26, 2008.
2009
The 2009 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 30-November 1, 2009.
2010
The 2010 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 29–31, 2010.
2011
The 2011 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 28–30, 2011.
2012
The 2012 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 26–28, 2012.
2013
The 2013 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from November 1–3, 2013.
2014
The 2014 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 31-November 2, 2014.
2015
The 2015 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 30-November 1, 2015.
2016
The 2016 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held from October 28–30, 2016. During their Sunday headlining set, Arcade Fire recorded the audience singing a melody for an unreleased song for its upcoming album, which later became "Everything Now".
2017
The 2017 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held October 27–29, 2017.
2018
The 2018 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held October 26–28, 2018.
2019
The 2019 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience was held October 25–27, 2019.
