freedom
12th August 2007, 05:28 PM
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44053000/jpg/_44053716_prince2_getty203b.jpg
Prince fans warned of 'no-show'
Prince fans are being warned he and his band may not appear at the "aftershow" events promoted as part of his UK tour.
Tickets to the "official aftershow" have been priced at £75 and £25
Parties at the Indigo2 venue follow his concerts at London's O2 arena, but fans say sometimes he fails to go to these, or has played for only a few minutes.
Prince's website now says that when there are arena gigs on consecutive days, "the band usually opts to rest" instead of appearing at Indigo2.
A spokeswoman for Prince said it was "never guaranteed" he would appear.
"What's always been up on the official website was that Prince's band would play most nights, and on any given night the Purple One could come.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44034000/jpg/_44034922_prince3_203.jpg The arena's stage is the symbol to which Prince changed his name (photo by Andrew Buchan)
"But every night was going to be different and special," she told the BBC News website.
"For instance, the other night, his opening act Beverley Knight took to the stage for a long, late-night jam session with Prince on the guitar, which was a very special surprise for the crowd."
Many fans who booked tickets to the concerts in the main arena received promotional e-mails from agency Ticketmaster, highlighting the addition of the "aftershow" events to the tour schedule.
The agency's website promoted the "aftershow" as "the white hot place to hang for those still in need of some serious grooves".
Tickets were priced at £75 and £25, whereas the main arena show was £31.21 per seat, the figure being a reference to recent Prince album 3121.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44054000/jpg/_44054043_beverley_ap203b.jpg Prince's spokeswoman said Knight's set was "a very special surprise"
Ticketmaster also stated: "Please be aware that Prince and the band are not guaranteed to perform, but as we all know with these cats - expect the unexpected."
Adding to the confusion, a notice was placed on Prince's own site saying that he would not be playing at Friday night's "aftershow" - although then he did appear after all, with soul singer Knight.
However, fans on chat forums such as prince.org and housequake.com have alleged that warning messages were not prominently displayed when they booked tickets.
They said they had the impression that all "aftershow" events were further Prince concerts.
Some people claimed they had been contacting Ticketmaster to request refunds.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44053000/jpg/_44053707_prince_getty203i.jpg The star prepared 150 songs so he could rotate the setlist nightly
The star has been playing sets of about two hours in length in the main O2 arena, running through many of his hits, including Purple Rain, Alphabet Street and Kiss. He said he had prepared 150 songs for his musicians, who include Maceo Parker, formerly a saxophonist in James Brown's band. Neither Ticketmaster nor the O2 arena could be reached for comment, while promoter AEG referred calls to Prince's PR representatives.
source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6942963.stm
Prince fans warned of 'no-show'
Prince fans are being warned he and his band may not appear at the "aftershow" events promoted as part of his UK tour.
Tickets to the "official aftershow" have been priced at £75 and £25
Parties at the Indigo2 venue follow his concerts at London's O2 arena, but fans say sometimes he fails to go to these, or has played for only a few minutes.
Prince's website now says that when there are arena gigs on consecutive days, "the band usually opts to rest" instead of appearing at Indigo2.
A spokeswoman for Prince said it was "never guaranteed" he would appear.
"What's always been up on the official website was that Prince's band would play most nights, and on any given night the Purple One could come.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44034000/jpg/_44034922_prince3_203.jpg The arena's stage is the symbol to which Prince changed his name (photo by Andrew Buchan)
"But every night was going to be different and special," she told the BBC News website.
"For instance, the other night, his opening act Beverley Knight took to the stage for a long, late-night jam session with Prince on the guitar, which was a very special surprise for the crowd."
Many fans who booked tickets to the concerts in the main arena received promotional e-mails from agency Ticketmaster, highlighting the addition of the "aftershow" events to the tour schedule.
The agency's website promoted the "aftershow" as "the white hot place to hang for those still in need of some serious grooves".
Tickets were priced at £75 and £25, whereas the main arena show was £31.21 per seat, the figure being a reference to recent Prince album 3121.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44054000/jpg/_44054043_beverley_ap203b.jpg Prince's spokeswoman said Knight's set was "a very special surprise"
Ticketmaster also stated: "Please be aware that Prince and the band are not guaranteed to perform, but as we all know with these cats - expect the unexpected."
Adding to the confusion, a notice was placed on Prince's own site saying that he would not be playing at Friday night's "aftershow" - although then he did appear after all, with soul singer Knight.
However, fans on chat forums such as prince.org and housequake.com have alleged that warning messages were not prominently displayed when they booked tickets.
They said they had the impression that all "aftershow" events were further Prince concerts.
Some people claimed they had been contacting Ticketmaster to request refunds.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44053000/jpg/_44053707_prince_getty203i.jpg The star prepared 150 songs so he could rotate the setlist nightly
The star has been playing sets of about two hours in length in the main O2 arena, running through many of his hits, including Purple Rain, Alphabet Street and Kiss. He said he had prepared 150 songs for his musicians, who include Maceo Parker, formerly a saxophonist in James Brown's band. Neither Ticketmaster nor the O2 arena could be reached for comment, while promoter AEG referred calls to Prince's PR representatives.
source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6942963.stm