Celebrity
Madonna files to dismiss concertgoers’ lawsuit, says waking up early is not grounds for suing
Madonna is not getting hung up on any lawsuit.
On Wednesday, the pop star’s lawyers asked a federal judge to dismiss a class action lawsuit submitted by fans in January after her New York City “Celebration” tour concerts started hours past the advertised time, according to Billboard.
The filing argues that the plaintiffs’ complaint that fans had to “get up early to go to work” the next day does not constitute legal “injury” for which someone can be sued.
Concertgoers Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden filed the lawsuit shortly after the 65-year-old Grammy winner’s December 2023 concerts at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. They claimed the shows were falsely advertised because she did not hit the stage until after 10:30 p.m. — even though the start times for the shows were listed as 8:30 p.m.
Specifically, they argued her tardiness was a “wanton exercise in false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices.”
“Defendants failed to provide any notice to the ticketholders that the concerts would start much later than the start time printed on the ticket and as advertise,” Fellows and Hadden added.
Madonna’s lawyers, however, said there was nothing unreasonable about the timing of the concerts and that fans got exactly what they paid for.
“Nowhere did Defendants advertise that Madonna would take the stage at 8.30 p.m., and no reasonable concertgoers — and certainly no Madonna fan — would expect the headline act at a major arena concert to take the stage at the ticketed event time,” they stated.
“Rather, a reasonable concertgoer would understand that the venue’s doors will open at or before the ticketed time, one or more opening acts may perform while attendees arrive and make their way to their seats and before the headline act takes the stage, and the headline act will take the stage later in the evening.”
They further argued that the lawsuit does not allege “Madonna’s performance was subpar, that her performance was worth less than what they paid, or that they left the concert before watching her entire performance.”
Reps for Madonna didn’t immediately return Page Six’s request for comment.
Several fans expressed their disappointment after the “Vogue” singer’s shows ran so late, with many demanding refunds on social media.
“I don’t give a f–k if you’re Madonna,” one angry fan penned. “If you’re 3 hours late, you’re just f–king rude.”
A second added, “Concert supposed to start at 8:30. Madonna started at 11pm. Whole arena chanting bulls–t at her lateness. Great show but went way too late.”
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Sara Haines also expressed her dismay over the situation during a January episode of “The View.”
“It is disrespectful,” she slammed. “You are literally flipping off your fans who paid to come and watch you. You can be a diva, you should not act like a diva.”
Madge kicked off her “Celebration” tour in London in October 2023 after delaying the show for months when she fell ill to a “serious bacterial infection” that had her couped up in the ICU for several days.
During an Antwerp, Belgium show in October, she told fans it was a “f—ing miracle” she was alive and able to perform after many predicted she would succumb to the infection.
The tour has drummed up all sorts of headlines, from the Queen of Pop’s on-stage fall in Seattle to her berating a wheelchair-bound concertgoer in Los Angeles for sitting without knowing she was paralyzed.
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