The Others Way Festival Says Farewell

After more than a decade as one of Aotearoa’s most beloved independent music festivals, The Others Way will not return in 2026 or beyond. Organisers Banished Music say the decision comes after years of mounting financial pressure, rising industry costs and an increasingly unstable live music & funding landscape, making the festival no longer sustainable to deliver. 

Since launching in 2015, The Others Way has become a defining celebration of independent music, creativity and community on Auckland’s Karangahape Road, earning a reputation as a vital platform for emerging artists and music discovery.

It is with a truly heavy heart and weary soul, we share that The Others Way festival will not be continuing in 2026 or beyond.

We know how sad this will make a lot of people, and none sadder than us. This festival - a DIY love story and K Road juggernaut - has always been delivered by and for a community of weirdos and wonders. It has also existed uniquely as a platform for discovery, and a celebration of independent music and creativity.

We (Banished Music) attended The Others Way as music fans for seven years (2015-2022), and then were bestowed the great honour of taking the helm to deliver it for three more magical years (2023-2025). Watching it grow, seeing artists connect with audiences in such a meaningful way, and feeling the energy that filled those spaces each year has been one of the great joys of all time.

In 2026, trying to make a living as a mid-level independent music promoter in Aotearoa is hard. Delivering an independent boutique festival on the smell of an oily rag is extremely hard, and then throwing in the economic conditions and insane world that is 2026, you have a recipe for wild instability and stress, and very real potential outcomes like ‘we’ll be bankrupt if this goes wrong.’

In short, the magnificent joy received from delivering The Others Way is outweighed by the sheer financial strain and emotional toll it takes on us to deliver.

Rising costs across every aspect of the entertainment industry, combined with ongoing uncertainty in the sponsorship and funding landscape, and people just doing it too tough out there to commit to buying gig tickets have created significant pressure. We’ve explored every avenue available to us seeking new & established funding partners, pursuing sponsorship opportunities, and rethinking how the festival could operate sustainably. Despite these efforts, we haven’t been able to secure the secret formula to deliver the festival in a way that meets both our standards and our financial obligations. As well as that, over time the debt that we have accumulated on this project can no longer responsibly be carried forward.

2025 - unwittingly being our send off and Swan Song - was a majestic finale for The Others Way. Closing down K Road for the party of the year felt like a real moment in time. We hope you felt it too!

We want to express deep, deep gratitude to everyone who has been part of The Others Way journey. Our venues, our production crews and site staff, our sponsors and funding partners (shout out KBA and Tātaki Auckland Unlimited and NZ Music Commission), the Flying Out and Flying Nun visionaries who started this thing in the first place, the mighty Banished whanau, THOUSANDS of artists from near and far, and all you music lovers who bought a ticket over the years.

You are the reason this festival meant something real. For the love of god, if you have the means to, go out and buy a ticket today. To an independent artist’s show run by an independent promoter at an independent venue. It’s a wild time out there in the current music industry landscape of Aotearoa, and a lot of us are fighting to survive.

© Scoop Media