Madonna sued by fans for starting New York concert over two hours late
The Queen of Pop took to the stage after 10.30pm
Two extremely disgruntled Madonna fans are suing The Queen of Pop for allegedly turning up over two hours late for a concert.
As part of her global Celebration Tour, Madonna played a three-night residency at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in December 2023.
The fans, Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden, claim in court papers submitted at a Brooklyn federal court on Wednesday (17th January) that Madonna took to the stage more than two hours late at the opening date on 13th December.
They say the concert had an advertised start time of 8.30pm, however Madonna didn’t start the gig until after 10.30pm, and she finished shortly before 1am.
Fellows and Hadden state they "would not have paid for tickets" had they known it would finish so late, and argued "many ticketholders who attended concerts on a weeknight had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day."
Elsewhere in the papers, they state they “left stranded in the middle of the night” with “limited public transportation, limited ride-sharing, and/or increased” transport costs when the show ended in the early hours.
Together with suing Madonna, Fellows and Hadden are suing promoters Live Nation and the Barclays Center for "false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices."
"Based on the years-long history of Madonna arriving several hours late to prior concerts (and which conduct continued at concerts in other cities after the Concerts at the Barclays Center, including concerts in Washington, D.C. and Boston), Plaintiffs knew or should have known that the Concerts would not start at 8:30 p.m., and that Madonna would not take the stage until several hours after the start time, causing Plaintiffs and all Class Members to have to wait several hours," the lawsuit said.
Although Fellows and Hadden only attended the 13th December show, the court papers also note that Madonna also turned up two hours late at the 14th and 16th December concerts.
"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 advertised, which resulted in the ticketholders waiting for hours," they argue.
They also said: Madonna "has a long history of arriving and starting her concerts late, sometimes several hours late" and cited "her 2016 Rebel Heart Tour, her 2019-2020 Madame X Tour, and prior tours, where Madonna continuously started her concerts over two hours late” as examples.
Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden are seeking unspecified damages.
Madonna was previously sued by a US concertgoer over a late start time for a Florida concert in 2019, however the man voluntarily withdrew the lawsuit.
Madonna's The Celebration Tour - photos and setlist:
1) 'Celebration Intro' / 'Nothing Really Matters'
2) 'Everybody'
3) 'Into The Groove'
4) 'Burning Up'
5) 'Open Your Heart'
6) 'Holiday'
7) 'Live To Tell'
8) 'Like A Prayer'
9) 'Act of Living For Love' /' The 90's' (Interlude)
10) 'Erotica' / 'Papa Don't Preach'
11) 'Justify My Love' / 'Fever'
12) 'Hung Up On Tokischa'
13) 'Bad Girl'
14) 'Vogue' (Estere's Ball)
15) 'Human Nature' / 'Crazy For You'
16) 'The Beast Within' (Interlude)
17) 'Die Another Day'
18) 'Don't Tell Me'
19) 'Mother And Father'
20) 'Survive' / 'La Isla Bonita' / 'Argentina'
21) 'I Don't Search I Find' (Interlude)
22) 'Bedtime Story'
23) 'Ray of Light'
24) 'Rain'
25) 'Billie Jean' vs. 'Like A Virgin'
26) 'GMAYL' / 'Bitch I'm Madonna'