Justin Bieber has cancelled his two August concerts at MetLife Stadium.
Citing “unforeseen circumstances,” Justin Bieber cancelled, today, all the remaining dates on his Purpose World Tour, including his Aug. 23 and 24 concerts at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.
“After careful consideration he has decided he will not be performing any further dates,” a message on his web site, JustinBieberMusic.com, states.
No further explanation is available, but according to TMZ.com, “one tour source told us Justin’s ‘just over it.’ ”
That may or may not be true. But I really believe that Bieber owes his fans more of an explanation. They’ve bought his music and gone to other concerts for years. Many of them, I’m sure, were expecting this to be a highlight of their summer.
The first of his 14 cancelled shows, furthermore, was scheduled for less than a week from now, in Arlington, Texas.
“Unforeseen circumstances” doesn’t cut it, especially because tickets went on sale in December. And the “careful consideration” line implies that this is not a situation when an emergency made the shows impossible. I can’t imagine low ticket sales were a problem: He has sold out shows consistently on this tour.
Bieber is only 23, and has many decades of performing ahead of him. Fans will forgive just about anything, if an artist is honest. But if you start disappointing them and hiding behind vague explanations, the bond between you and them will start to fray.
The message reads in full:
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Justin Bieber will cancel the remainder of the Purpose World Tour concerts. Justin loves his fans and hates to disappoint them. He thanks his fans for the incredible experience of the Purpose World Tour over last 18 months. He is grateful and honored to have shared that experience with his cast and crew for over 150 successful shows across 6 continents during this run. However, after careful consideration he has decided he will not be performing any further dates.
Regarding refunds, the stadium says, via MetLifeStadium.com:
For tickets purchased at the MetLife Stadium Box Office, refunds will be processed beginning Monday, July 31 at 11 a.m. Ticket buyers must bring the physical tickets and the exact credit card used for the purchase (if tickets were charged) to the box office in order to initiate the refund.
Box office hours are Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.– 5 p.m. Please note there is a Coldplay concert on Aug.1 so we recommend you do not arrive onsite that day for refunds due to event day activities.
AUG. 4 UPDATE: Bieber has released a statement on the tour cancellation that’s heartfelt but also baffling, and doesn’t really clear anything up. Here is the unedited text, exactly as posted on social media:
Im so grateful for this journey with all of you.. Im grateful for the tours but most of all I am grateful i get to go through this life WITH YOU.! Learning and growing hasn’t always been easy but knowing I im not alone has kept me going. I have let my insecurities get the best of me at times, I let my broken relationships dictate the way I acted toward people and the way I treated them! i let bitterness, jealousy and fear run my life.!!!! I am extremely blessed to have people in the past few years help me build my character back up reminding me of who I am and who I want to be!!!. Reminding me my past decisions and past relationships don’t dictate my future decisions and my future relationships. Im VERY aware I’m never gonna be perfect, and I’m gonna keep making mistakes but what I’m not gonna do is let my past dictate my future.. What I’m not gonna do is be ashamed by my mistakes. I wanna be a man that learns from them and grows from them.!! I want you all to know this tour has been unbelievable and has taught me so much about myself.. I am reminded of how blessed I am to have a voice in this world. I’ve learned the more you appreciate your calling the more you want to protect your calling. Me taking this time right now is me saying I want to be SUSTAINABLE.. I want my career to be sustainable, but I also want my mind heart and soul to be sustainable. So that I can be the man I want to be, the husband I eventually want to be and the father I want to be. This message is just an opportunity for you to know my heart, I’m not expecting anyone to understand, but I do want people to have an opportunity to know where I am coming from! THIS MESSAGE IS IS VERY GRAMMATICALLY INCORRECT BUT ITS FROM THE HEART. BUT I THINK THERES SOMETHING SPECIAL ABOUT IMPERFECTIONS!!
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