Dinda Shabrina, Jakarta – The director of the 2025 Pestapora Music Festival, Rizky Aulia or Kiki Ucup, has apologized and admitted that their team was negligent in partnering with PT Freeport Indonesia. "We are fully aware of our negligence in working with PT Freeport Indonesia," he said in a video posted on Instagram @pestapora on Saturday, September 6, 2025.
After sparking discussions among netizens, Kiki Ucup stated that they have terminated the partnership with PT Freeport Indonesia and will not accept any funding from them. "We also ensure that there will be no presence of PT Freeport Indonesia in the implementation of Pestapora 2025," he added.
Regarding the impact of numerous bands or musicians canceling their performances at the event, Kiki Ucup mentioned that Pestapora will continue as planned.
It is known that several bands have decided to cancel their appearances at Pestapora 2025, suspecting the involvement of PT Freeport Indonesia in the country's largest music festival.
Among the bands that have canceled their performances are Sukatani, Efek Rumah Kaca (ERK), The Jeblogs, Negativa, Leipzig, Kelelawar Malam, Rebellion Rose, Rekah, Xin Lie, Ornament, and Centra. These bands announced their cancellations almost simultaneously on their official social media accounts.
For example, the band Efek Rumah Kaca officially announced the cancellation of their performance on the third day of Pestapora 2025, Sunday, September 7, 2025. "We apologize to the audience who have purchased tickets and were looking forward to our performance," ERK stated on their official Instagram @sebelahmata_erk.
ERK also apologized for the negligence in the thorough testing process conducted by their management. ERK had initially performed on the first day of Pestapora on Friday, September 5, 2025.
ERK also hopes that such incidents will not occur again, considering that the impact of the partnership with PT Freeport Indonesia will not simply disappear. "Therefore, we choose to withdraw because it does not align with the values we uphold," they wrote.
Similarly, the band Sukatani also issued a statement to cancel their performance at Pestapora 2025, which was officially announced on their Instagram. "We have decided not to perform at Pestapora 2025. See you on another occasion. Thank you," wrote the band Sukatani.
– Eka Yudha Saputra contributed to the writing of this article.