Jason Isbell requiring proof of vaccination at shows: “If the venue won’t allow that, we won’t play”

Jason Isbell has announced that for the foreseeable future, concertgoers will need to show proof of COVID vaccination or a current negative test to attend one of his shows. "If the venue won’t allow that, we won’t play," he wrote on Twitter.

He went on MSNBC to talk with Stephanie Ruhle about his decision which may not please all of his fans. "All the response I've gotten from people in the business has been positive," Isbell told Ruhle. "They understand that we could go back to not working at all and a lot of these smaller venues, they aren't going to be able to reopen if they go through another round of shutdowns...they're just getting so much pushback from some of the governors of certain states who want to kowtow to their political base and try to make people think that their freedom is being encroached upon. I'm all for freedom but I think if you're dead, you don't have any freedoms at all. It's probably important to stay alive before you start questioning your liberty. It's life and then it's liberty and then it's the pursuit of happiness."

You can watch that clip below.

Other artists, including Japanese Breakfast, have also begun requiring proof of vaccination to attend their shows, and Live Nation recently announced that they'd allow artists to restrict show attendance to people who have been vaccinated or have a recent negative COVID test.

Jason is on tour now, playing Austin tonight (8/9) with Lucinda Williams, and he'll be in NYC for two shows at the Rooftop at Pier 17 on September 24 & 25 with Joy Oladokun (tickets). All dates are listed below.

JASON ISBELL - 2021/2022 TOUR DATES
AUG 9, 2021 - ACL Live at the Moody Theatre - Austin, TX - w/ Lucinda Williams
AUG 11, 2021 - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion - Houston, TX - w/ Lucinda Williams
AUG 12, 2021 - Cain's Ballroom - Tulsa, OK - w/ Ray Wylie Hubbard
AUG 13, 2021 - Panther Island Pavilion - Fort Worth, TX - w/ Lucinda Williams
AUG 14, 2021 - First Security Amphitheater - Little Rock, AR - w/ Lucinda Williams
AUG 20, 2021 - Blue Ox Music Festival - Eau Claire, WI
AUG 21, 2021 - Cornbelter's Stadium - Normal, IL - w/ Brittney Spencer
AUG 22, 2021 - Wintrust Field - Schaumburg, IL - w/ Brittney Spencer
AUG 24, 2021 - TCU Amphitheater - Indianapolis, IN - w/ Brittney Spencer
AUG 26, 2021 - DeVos Performance Hall - Grand Rapids, MI - w/ Brittney Spencer
AUG 27, 2021 - Chautauqua Institution - Chautauqua, NY
AUG 28, 2021 - Harrisburg University at Riverfront Park - Harrisburg, PA - w/ Brittney Spencer
AUG 29, 2021 - Railbird Music Festival - Lexington, KY
SEP 2, 2021 - Columbia Speedway Entertainment Center - Columbia, SC
SEP 3, 2021 - Montgomery Performing Arts Centre - Montgomery, AL - w/ Rob Aldridge
SEP 4, 2021 - Bonnaroo - Manchester, TN
SEP 9, 2021 - Park City Song Summit - Park City, UT
SEP 10, 2021 - SEP 12, 2021 - Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion - Bristol, TN
SEP 11, 2021 - Oak Mountain Amphitheatre - Pelham, AL - w/ Brothers Osborne, Joy Oladokun
SEP 14, 2021 - Wolf Trap - Vienna, VA - w/ Waxahatchee
SEP 15, 2021 - Met Opera House - Philadelphia, PA - w/ Kathleen Edwards
SEP 17, 2021 - Harvest Music Festival - Fredericton, Canada
SEP 18, 2021 - The Wang Theatre - Boston, MA
SEP 19, 2021 - Borderland Music Festival - East Aurora, NY
SEP 20, 2021 - The Fillmore - Detroit, MI - w/ Brittney Spencer
SEP 24, 2021 - Rooftop at Pier 17 - New York, NY - w/ Joy Oladokun
SEP 25, 2021 - Rooftop at Pier 17 - New York, NY - w/ Joy Oladokun
SEP 26, 2021 - Virginia Credit Union LIVE! At Richmond Raceway - Richmond, VA - w/ Joy Oladokun
OCT 2, 2021 - OCT 3, 2021 - ShoalsFest - Florence, AL
OCT 7, 2021 - Saenger Theatre - Mobile, AL - w/ Rob Aldridge
OCT 8, 2021 - Brandon Amphitheater - Brandon, MS - w/ Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives, Brittney Spencer
OCT 10, 2021 - The Criterion - Oklahoma City, OK
OCT 15, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Amanda Shires
OCT 16, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Brittney Spencer
OCT 17, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Mickey Guyton
OCT 19, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Amythyst Kiah
OCT 20, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Shemekia Copeland
OCT 22, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Allison Russell
OCT 23, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Joy Oladokun
OCT 24, 2021 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN - w/ Adia Victoria
NOV 26, 2021 - Durham Performing Arts Center - Durham, NC - w/ Hiss Golden Messenger
NOV 27, 2021 - Durham Performing Arts Center - Durham, NC - w/ Hiss Golden Messenger
NOV 28, 2021 - The Peace Center - Greenville, SC - w/ S.G. Goodman
NOV 30, 2021 - Stifel Theatre - St Louis, MO - w/ Strand of Oaks
DEC 1, 2021 - The Armory - Minneapolis, MN - w/ Strand of Oaks
DEC 2, 2021 - Riverside Theater - Milwaukee, WI - w/ Strand of Oaks
DEC 4, 2021 - The Rust Belt - East Moline, IL - w/ Strand of Oaks
DEC 7, 2021 - UPMC Events Center - Moon, PA - w/ Strand of Oaks
DEC 8, 2021 - Akron Civic Theatre - Akron, OH - Support TBD
DEC 16, 2021 - Tabernacle - Atlanta, GA - w/ Brittney Spencer
DEC 17, 2021 - Tabernacle - Atlanta, GA - w/ Gabe Lee
DEC 18, 2021 - Tabernacle - Atlanta, GA - w/ S.G. Goodman
DEC 19, 2021 - Tabernacle - Atlanta, GA - w/ Morgan Wade
FEB 24, 2022 - The Warfield Theatre - San Francisco, CA - w/ Lucinda Williams
FEB 25, 2022 - The Warfield Theatre - San Francisco, CA - w/ Lucinda Williams
MAR 1, 2022 - The Orpheum - Vancouver, BC - w/ Lucinda Williams
MAR 2, 2022 - Paramount Theatre - Seattle, WA - w/ Lucinda Williams
JUN 18, 2022 - Williamsburg Live - DeWitt Museum - Lawn - Williamsburg, VA
AUG 26, 2022 - AUG 28, 2022 - Beach Road Weekend - Tisbury, MA
NOV 6, 2022 - Stockholm Waterfront - Stockholm, Sweden
NOV 7, 2022 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Oslo
NOV 9, 2022 - Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark
NOV 10, 2022 - Festsaal Kreuzberg - Berlin, Germany
NOV 12, 2022 - De Roma - Antwerp, Belgium
NOV 13, 2022 - Gloria Theater - Cologne, Germany
NOV 14, 2022 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands
NOV 15, 2022 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands
NOV 17, 2022 - Eventim Apollo - London, United Kingdom
NOV 18, 2022 - O2 Apollo Manchester - Manchester, UK
NOV 19, 2022 - Olympia Theatre - Dublin, Ireland