Illness Forces Ruusut Off Festivaali Bill, Olga Steps Up to Main Pyynikki Stage

Ruusut cancelled their Saturday headliner slot at the Festivaali festival in Pyynikki, Tampere (August 22), and Olga will replace them on the main Pyynikki stage. The festival posted the cancellation on Instagram around 19:00 on Saturday, saying the band had withdrawn due to illness. Olga had been scheduled to play the Amphitheatre an hour earlier, but will now take the 23:00 slot on the main stage. Vilma Jää has been moved into Olga’s former spot.

Aki Roukala, the festival founder, said organisers learned of the illness only a few hours earlier. "We examined a couple of options and decided to move Olga from the too-small stage to a suitable one, and then booked Vilma Jää to Olga’s spot. She jumped in the car straight away from Helsinki, and is here now," he told Aamulehti. He said he did not know the nature of the illness but was upbeat about the festival's final hours, noting "There are 5,500 happy people here."

The indie-focused, sold-out Festivaali is running for its fifth year on August 21–22 and is expected to draw about 11,000 visitors over the weekend. The change follows the festival's announcement that it had expanded its lineup with 12 new acts.