Media releases

VIRGIN FESTIVAL NAILS ITS FINAL FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR!

Virgin Festival's nationwide tour closes the season with a bang with Nine Inch Nails and almost 30,000 fans

TORONTO (ONTARIO) August 31, 2009

The final Canadian VIRGIN FESTIVAL of 2009 brought down the house and finished its cross-Canada tour this weekend at The Molson Amphitheatre in Toronto. Nearly 30,000 screaming music fans rocked out to some of the world’s hottest talent, including the final Canadian performance by industrial rock legends Nine Inch Nails.

“Our coast-to-coast tour is over but it’s been an unforgettable summer!” said Andrew Bridge, director of Virgin Festivals. “We’ve rocked five cities in five provinces with more than 100 international and Canadian acts and hundreds of thousands of music loving fans. To top if all off, Virgin Festival Ontario brought Virgin Festival Canada’s grand total attendance to 250,000 over the last four years and this weekend, we brought it all back to the city that hosted the first Virgin Festival in Canada and tore the roof off The Molson Amphitheatre!”

Day one highlights included sets on the Virgin Mobile Stage by singer-songwriter PAOLO NUTINI, Scottish rockers FRANZ FERDINAND and influential rock gods PIXIES. Toronto electro-rock duo THUNDERHEIST laid it down on the Virgin Radio 999 Stage while Canada’s THE RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE rocked it out on the Boardwalk Stage.

Virgin Mobile Stage highlights on day two included NINE INCH NAILS’ epic Festival closing set, PET SHOP BOYS delivering a brilliantly electrifying dance set and festival-goers partying on stage with American hip-hop artists N.E.R.D. Over on the Virgin Radio 999 Stage synth-pop specialists THE NEW CITIES and reggae infusion singer SEAN KINGSTON kept the party thumping!

During the weekend, more than 25 hours of music pumped up the volume at The Molson Amphitheatre thanks to 36 super-hot acts, three awesome stages and a truck-load of Festival experiences to keep everyone entertained in between the music! Here’s how the numbers broke down:

Number crunching Virgin Festival style!

• 29,000 Music-loving Festival fans!
• 94 Supersonic speakers!
• 1,044 Freezies handed out by Virgin Angels to help people chill out
• 28 Tractor-trailers to haul the artists’ gear in and out
• 4 Dancing shrubs
• 234 Fans who added their mark to the time capsule art installation
• 1,048 Festival-goers making mobile calls in the Virgin Mobile Silencer Booths
• 89 Text flirts on the Virgin Mobile text to screen

   

• 234 Novice sex kittens who got naughty with pole dancing lessons

About Virgin Mobile

The Virgin Mobile group of companies has attracted more than 12 million customers worldwide. As the No.1 mobile youth network, Virgin Mobile Canada's mission is to be Canada’s most loved mobile company. Its simpler, better deals offer customers control, flexibility and choice to design mobile packages that truly works for them. J.D. Power and Associates ranked Virgin Mobile highest in customer satisfaction with prepaid wireless service for four years in a row  and 91% of customers would recommend Virgin Mobile to a friend.

Virgin Mobile phones are available at more than 4,000 locations with top-up cards available at more than 10,000 locations nationally. Virgin Mobile products can also be purchased online at www.virginmobile.ca or by calling 1-888-999-2321.

For more information, please contact:

Kayla Rochkin, Hill & Knowlton Canada
416-413-4767
kayla.rochkin@hillandknowlton.ca

Erica Faltous, Hill & Knowlton Canada
416-413-4695 / 416-400-0171
erica.faltous@hillandknowlton.ca