A new international music festival, ‘rockinʼon sonic,’ has been announced, co-hosted by Rockin’ On Japan, the organizers of ‘ROCK IN JAPAN FESTIVAL,’ and Creativeman, the organizers of ‘SUMMER SONIC.’
The festival is set to take place over two days on January 4 (Saturday) and January 5 (Sunday) in 2025 at Makuhari Messe International Exhibition Hall in Chiba. The event is hosted by Rockin’ On Japan and Makuhari Messe, with Creativeman handling artist invitations and production operations. The lineup of artists will be announced soon.
Producer Yoichiro Yamazaki also shared his comments regarding the event’s announcement. He mentioned that the second and third stages, as well as the food area used for the year-end ‘COUNTDOWN JAPAN,’ will be utilized. The festival will feature a mix of well-established international artists and promising young performers, aiming to cater to the preferences of international music listeners.
Rockin’ On, which has led the scene for 50 years as the leading magazine for international rock music, and Creativeman, the organizers of Japan’s largest urban international music festival ‘Summer Sonic,’ are launching a new international music festival.
The event will take place at Makuhari Messe over two days on January 4 (Saturday) and 5 (Sunday), 2025.
While it is unusual to hold a festival over the New Year holidays, we thought it would be a great time since many people are off work and have more free time. We believe this New Year festival will create a new and fun gathering place for international music fans.
One concern was whether international artists would be willing to come to Japan during the New Year period. However, international management and artists have warmly welcomed the event. They expressed a strong desire to come to Japan more often and perform in front of Japanese audiences, making this event a perfect match for their needs and raising their expectations.
The venue will utilize the second and third stages, as well as the food area, from the year-end domestic music festival COUNTDOWN JAPAN. The GALAXY STAGE has a capacity of 20,000, and the COSMO STAGE has a capacity of 8,000. We aim to maximize the potential of the highly acclaimed COUNTDOWN JAPAN space, known for its stage specs, layout, food area, visual equipment, and decorations. Given that it will be held in the middle of winter, we envisioned an indoor and convenient urban festival from the start, making Makuhari Messe the ideal venue.
As you might have guessed from the fact that we are not using the main stage of COUNTDOWN JAPAN, rockinʼon sonic is not a massive festival like Fuji Rock or Summer Sonic (though the venue and stages are still quite large). This festival will not feature top global artists or stadium-level performers. Since this is Rockin’ On’s first international music festival, we are focusing on highly trusted artists familiar to long-time international music listeners and young artists who are supported by younger listeners and highly regarded by core fans. The lineup is already incredibly rich. With two stages running without overlap, attendees can see all the artists, providing a unique and intensely rich musical experience different from large festivals or solo concerts. Please look forward to it.
Globally, apart from classical music and EDM, there are hardly any rock music festivals held at the beginning of the year.
As a new challenge, Creativeman and Rockin’ On are combining forces to create the best festival possible.
Come join us on January 4 and 5, 2025!
rockinʼon sonic producer Yoichiro Yamazaki
rockinʼon sonic
Dates: January 4 (Sat.) and 5 (Sun.), 2025
Venue: Makuhari Messe International Exhibition Hall
Organizers: Rocking On Japan / Makuhari Messe Inc.
Invitation/Production Management: Creative Man Productions
