Save Vans Warped Tour

Warped Tour is a traveling Rock festival that has toured the United States annually each summer since 1995. It is the largest traveling music festival in the United States and is the longest-running touring music festival in North America.
The first Warped Tour took place in 1995, and the skateboard shoe manufacturer Vans became the main sponsor of the tour starting with the second tour in 1996, when it became known as the Vans Warped Tour.
Warped Tour was conceived in 1995 as an eclectic alternative rock festival, but in 1996 began focusing on punk rock music. Although it has continued to be known primarily as a punk rock festival, it has included acts of diverse genres over the years.
On November 15, 2017, founder Kevin Lyman announced that the 2018 Vans Warped Tour would be the final, full cross-country run.
Warped Tour has become a launching pad for a lot of up and coming artists. The festival has been attributed to bringing unknown artists like Blink-182, My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Paramore, MGK, Katy Perry and Yelawolf to the spotlight. Warped Tour has given artists like Will.i.am and the Black Eyed Peas a chance to perform. Black Eyed Peas were featured on the 1999 Vans Warped Tour. According to Will.i.am, the Black Eyed Peas were the first group not categorized as "punk" to play at Warped Tour.
The Vans Warped Tour appeals to a slightly diverse audience. Warped Tour started as a tour that centered punk has evolved into a festival that includes ska, pop and hip-hop.
Activism is a major component of the Vans Warped Tour. Warped Tour allows for non-profit organizations such as Invisible Children, To Write Love On Her Arms, and Shirts for a Cure to advocate about their cause. Other causes that are represented at Warped Tour are Music Saves Lives and Earth Echo. Earth Echo promotes recycling. They also provide a solar powered stage. Keep A Breast is another organization on the Vans Warped Tour. Keep A Breast educates women about Breast Cancer and preventative measures against the disease. This organization worked in conjunction with the Girlz Garage on the Vans Warped Tour. People who donate to the cause are given T-shirts signed by artists on the tour to spread awareness of Breast Cancer. In March 2016, it was announced that Warped Tour would be teaming up with A Voice For The Innocent to address the issue of sex crimes in the music scene.
Warped Tour has become almost a family reunion for those with a music taste that has been lost throughout the years. While there are plenty of music festivals dedicated to the popular music and artists that you hear about on a daily basis such as Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and Chance the Rapper, Warped Tour is the only place where the emos, punk rockers, and metalheads can come together feel accepted and understood.
South x Southwest, Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Bonnaroo will not offer the same community. You will not find bands like Silent Planet, Blessthefall, Blink-182, A Day to Remember, Black Veil Brides, Green Day, and Anti-Flag together anywhere else.
Through this petition, I am trying to get the attention of Warped Tour and its founder Kevin Lyman to show that there is a large fan base that would be devastated with the discontinuation of the tour. Thousands of people gather together at this tour every year to see their favorite bands and I'm reaching out to those thousands to stand up for their music and prove that punk isn't dead, heavy metal is music, and goths and emos are not scary. Our music has been know to stand up against those in power in attempts to right the wrongs in our society. Let this be a chance to have your say in saving your music. Don't let 2018 be the last hurrah of music drowned out by a taste dictated by popularity.