Lionel Richie fans in New York had to wait a couple of days for him to say “Hello,” and they aren’t happy about it.
The music legend’s show with Earth, Wind & Fire – part of their Sing a Song All Night Long tour – was slated to play Madison Square Garden Saturday.
But severe weather in the New York area that night prevented Richie’s plane from landing on its arrival from Boston. Richie, 74, apologized on social media at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, an hour after the concert was scheduled to begin, saying that he was “so bummed” about the situation.
USA TODAY has reached out to Richie’s rep for further comment.
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The concert has been rescheduled to Monday with all tickets being honored and refunds available until 7:30 p.m. ET Monday. But fans angry at the late notice and inconvenience vocalized their disapproval on social media.
“Thank you so much for announcing this an hour after the show was supposed to start,” @howdy_imjack on X, formerly Twitter, responded to Richie’s post, while @spaceforcetimes added, “Sounds like bad planning on your part, @LionelRichie, trying to fly in at the last minute. I’ll take a refund please – no thx to Monday!”
Many fans wondered why a veteran artist with decades of travel experience would wait so close to show time to arrive at the venue. Richie and EWF played Boston’s TD Garden the night before the scheduled performance at The Garden.
Other fans who traveled to New York for the concert expressed irritation that they couldn’t attend the new date.
The Sing a Song All Night Long tour started Aug. 4 in St. Paul, Minnesota, and is scheduled to wrap Sept. 15 in Los Angeles.
Richie, the voice behind such timeless smashes as “Dancing on the Ceiling,” “Stuck on You” and “All Night Long,” as well as his lauded tenure in the Commodores with “Easy,” “Sail On” and “Still” among the group’s classics, is also continuing his Las Vegas residency. Dubbed Lionel Richie: King of Hearts, the show will play the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas for six shows in October.
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