The Lovers & Friends Festival was supposed to take place on May 4 in Las Vegas with headliners like Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, Lil Wayne, and Usher ready to take the stage. However, with little notice, frustrated festival-goers received word that, due to high winds in the area, the festival was canceled the day it was scheduled, leaving many stuck in Las Vegas for the weekend.
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Usher Makes Surprise Club Appearance In Lieu Of Festival
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However, some of the scheduled performers decided to make good on the promise of a show. Usher, who is also a co-producer of the R&B and pop music festival, made an impromptu appearance on May 3 at Jewel nightclub at the Aria hotel. Per the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the singer performed a set entitled, “Bad Girl: 20 Years of Confessions” during his performance. Celebrity guests like Victoria Monet, Jermaine Dupri, and Lil Jon also popped in for the surprise set.
People magazine also reported that Snoop Dogg and T-Pain, both scheduled to perform at the festival, popped in for a surprise set at Ayu Dayclub at Resorts World hotel on May 4.
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Festival Canceled Hours Before Scheduled Start
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The festival was canceled via a statement posted to their website hours before it was scheduled to start.
“Saturday’s Lovers & Friends Festival at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds has been canceled. Lovers & Friends Festival organizers have been monitoring the weather for several days and proactively preparing for a windy Saturday. However, the National Weather Service has now issued a High Wind Warning, including dangerous 30-35 mph sustained winds with gusts potentially more than 60 mph. Following advice from the National Weather Service and in consultation with local public officials, we must make the safest decision for our fans, artists, and staff, and cancel tomorrow’s Lovers & Friends Festival,” the statement read.
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“This was an incredibly heartbreaking decision to make as we are aware that fans have traveled from all over the world to enjoy this incredible lineup of superstars and have been looking forward to this event for several months. We’ve worked hard to create an amazing event for you, and we are just as disappointed as you are.”
Festival-goers were that all tickets would be refunded.
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Usher ‘Just As Disappointed As You Are’
Mannn…I’m just as disappointed as you are. We were getting ready to turn up and celebrate today. I have to follow the orders of city officials and the National Weather Service for everyone’s protection and stand strong in my belief that everything happens for a reason. I’m sorry…
— Usher Raymond IV (@Usher) May 4, 2024
Usher posted on X that he shared the frustration of ticketholders.
“I’m just as disappointed as you are. We were getting ready to turn up and celebrate today. I have to follow the orders of city officials and the National Weather Service for everyone’s protection and stand strong in my belief that everything happens for a reason. I’m sorry we won’t get to see each other today, but know that I am always working on something to express my heartfelt gratitude for each and every one of you who continue to support me.”
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Frustrated Ticket Holders Took To Social Media
Many would-be festival-goers took to social media to air their frustrations, with users like @TheLuncheonLawyer posting a video on TikTok where she claimed she would be hesitant to attend the festival ever again due to the way the organizers handled the cancelation.
“We’re in Vegas right now,” she said in her video, filmed as she walked through a Vegas casino. “We just found out that the Lovers & Friends Festival is canceled. I’m so hurt right now. I don’t understand why they couldn’t tell us this earlier, like on Friday, when the wind conversation first started happening, but now we’re all here in Vegas for this festival.”
She explained that she’d flown in from out of town, as had many of her friends, and expressed frustration with the lack of notice about the cancelation from the festival’s organizers.
“We flew from Atlanta. My friend flew from DC. People have come from all over the world to get here and the festival’s canceled. It makes sense, if the winds are going to be too dangerous for people to be outside. But at the same time, I didn’t get an email, I didn’t get a text message. I had to find out from our Uber driver. Like our Uber driver was like, ‘Oh, you didn’t know festival’s canceled?’ Where was the advance notice?”
The video went viral, garnering over 600,000 views.
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Unhappy Festival Goer Said She’s Unlikely To Return
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“That’s what’s frustrating about the whole thing. I’m sure this was a really hard decision on behalf of Lovers & Friends. I know they probably didn’t want to cancel the festival. But I’m heartbroken… I get it. But at the same time, I really wanted some more advance notice. I don’t even know if I would come back next time. Not because they canceled it, but the way they went about it. That really is rubbing me the wrong way,” she said.