Rapper Ice seasoning faced a wave of backlash after she arrived nearly 30 minutes late for her highly anticipated New Year's Eve performance at Wildlands Festival in Queensland, Australia.
The “Barbie World” singer, who was headlining, was due to perform at the Brisbane Showground on Tuesday night.
However, Ice Spice fans were left disappointed when the rapper arrived 25 minutes late for her 30-minute set.
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Ice Spice shows off her late performance
When Ice Spice finally took the stage, things only got worse. Just five minutes into her performance, event organizers turned off her microphone due to a 12:30 p.m. team looming. Despite appearing to continue performing, her voice could not be heard as the stage was cleared to make room for the next act.
Echoing the crowd, the “Delhi” artiste was seen pacing back and forth across the stage before flashing a peace sign and exiting without addressing the audience.
Disappointed fans, some of whom had traveled up to six hours and spent more than $350 for a ticket, took to social media to express their anger.
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Video Of Ledus Spice Being Booed Off Stage Goes Virus
Videos of the short and chaotic performance quickly went viral, with many questioning the lack of professionalism and timing of the festival.
“Being late is just unprofessional, we have a music curfew in the UK so if someone runs over the mic they just get cut, I've never seen an artist be late here because we just don't allow it,” said one. in the comments section.
“Let's respect everyone's time and money,” said another.
“I love how she looks like she's about to cry,” said a third.
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The venue publishes an announcement
In response to the backlash, Wildlands Festival organizers released a statement on Instagram addressing the situation:
“We understand that Ice Spice's late arrival was somewhat disappointing. Running a festival means we have to be extremely strict with our timings. We had a strict 12.30pm curfew and we have to make sure the last act gets on stage in time for everyone to enjoy the New Year's Eve countdown.”
“She's unworthy, so good at Wildlands,” said one user after hearing the venue's response.
“All venues should do this when artists are late,” said another.
“The fact that she was missing the plug was iconic,” commented a third.
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Attendees in the crowd are talking
Gold Coast music podcaster and journalist Brenton Larney was among those in the audience for the short six-minute feature.
“At 11.01pm – they gave her an extra minute… – they turned off the microphone and you could hear a collective gasp from the crowd,” he said. The Guardian. “They waited a while and they get two songs? So it was a bit funny and it was just disrespectful the way she left, she laughed that they tried to give her flowers for her birthday and she just shrugged them off.”
He noted that Ice Spice appeared subdued and gave the impression that “she didn't want to be there.”
“It felt really disrespectful, especially with all the cancellations and stuff we've had in the Australian music scene,” he said. “It didn't help.”
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Fans react to Ice Spice's attitude
Mia Sims, a 20-year-old dance teacher from the Gold Coast, said she and many others had arrived 30 minutes early to secure a good spot in the mosh pit ahead of Ice Spice's scheduled performance. As a result, fans in general were pressed together for almost an hour, and it all turned out to be extremely short.
“And she came out and played two songs, and they weren't even two of her biggest hits,” Sims said. “It seemed like a joke, like she didn't care that much, and especially, like, she hasn't posted anything on her social media or apologized. So I couldn't imagine being one of her biggest fans and it happens. I'd be pretty devastated.”