You are entitled to this if the festival artists cancel – news Trøndelag – Local news, TV and radio

For many, the highlight of the summer is seeing their favorite artists on stage. But things can happen that mean that the artist or band you were looking forward to seeing doesn’t come anyway. For the organizers it means stress and days of intensive work to find a replacement. The main artist died – Unfortunately, I have experienced cancellations several times, says festival director of Trondheim Festival Pstereo, Bård Flikke. – There are people we work with and things happen. Sometimes it’s minor incidents that make it not fit, other times it’s more serious. For Flikke and Pstereo, there is one incident in particular that stands out. On Friday 1 March 2019, Pstereofestivalen confirmed that the band The Prodigy would play as one of the main artists. Two days later came the news that the vocalist of the band, Keith Flint had died. – It was completely tragic. Both we as organizers and the audience were in shock. “Ditcha” by Travis Scott But it’s not always such serious cases that cause the cancellations. The festival director of the Øya festival, Claes Olsen, experienced this when he was “ditcha” by Travis Scott in 2016. – It is one of the “dumbest” cancellations we have had. Photo: Håvard Greger Hagen / news The rapper Travis Scott was to be one of the main artists during the Øya Festival 2016 as part of his European tour. The cancellation came the week before the festival. – He couldn’t come because he had to be in the studio to finish his album, and that’s not exactly an approved cancellation. 24 hours later they learned that he had agreed to play at an Apple event in Los Angeles instead. Travis Scott chose to cancel the gig at Øyafestivalen for an Apple event which was probably better paid. Photo: NTB Bilder / AFP – Then I would have been pissed off, says festival colleague Bård Flikke. – You burn some bridges with both artists and agents that way. He himself has experienced that artists report absence due to illness, but that it turns out that they are out partying in another city. – It is not a valid absence, so to speak. What about the festival participants? The Consumer Council regularly receives inquiries from disappointed audiences who experience cancellations in connection with concerts and festivals – so what are you really entitled to if an artist you were looking forward to seeing doesn’t come? If an artist does not come to a festival as agreed, you are basically entitled to a small price reduction, says Thomas Iversen of the Consumer Council. – But if it is a main artist, and you choose not to go as a result of that artist cancelling, then you will be entitled to all the money back, he says. According to Thomas Iversen of the Consumer Council, you can actually be entitled to a full refund if one of the main artists does not show up. Photo: Halvor Pritzlaff Njerve / Forbrukerrådet To be entitled to the money back, you must attend the concert or festival. – You are not entitled to both a bag and a sack. If you choose to go to the festival despite the cancellation of your favorite artist, you are at best entitled to a small price reduction. High pulse Of course there was no concert with The Prodigy during Pstereo in 2019 – but in 2023 they were once again on the poster for the festival. The same week that the festival was supposed to start, the message came once again. The band had to cancel for the second time because the vocalist, MC Maxim Reality had suffered a prolapse in his back and was unable to stand on stage. – Then there is a high pulse to find a solution, says Flikke. The Prodigy visited Slottsfjell in 2017. Photo: Kim Erlandsen / news P3 – You try to find someone who can meet the requirements, but every band is unique so you will never find a direct replacement. In a few days, Flikke had the British band Leftfield flown in. Who will step in? – To all stressed festival bookers: if there are problems, “you’re gonna call Øystein Greni”. So says Øystein Greni, vocalist and songwriter in Bigbang. – They are the best phones I can get, he says. In other words, Greni and Bigbang stand up if there are any festival managers who are in trouble – and preferably at short notice too. – Lars Lillo got corona when they were going to play at Over Oslo a few years ago. At one o’clock, Torkild from Over Oslo called me, I remember sitting on the toilet, and we had played the night before. He asked “can you play at three o’clock?”, “Yes, indeed”. – So it’s the best thing that can happen in Øystein Greni’s life, when other artists get sick. So far this summer, the phone Greni always hopes for has not rung, but hope lives on. – I’m going to play a solo concert now on Friday, so that day I can’t, but apart from that… Saturday, Sunday, Thursday. I’m coming, I, that is. Published 24/07/2024, at 05.25



ttn-69