So over the weekend I went to the Tarrus Riley and Alpha Blondy reggae concert at KICC in downtown Nairobi. If you didn't hear the news, the performers were a no show and a full on riot was launched. Here's the scoop.
The concert was said to last from 6pm to 6 am… But by 3 am, neither Riley nor Blondy had come out on stage. The crowd was tired of waiting. Once the MC made the announcement that the performances would begin at the top of the hour… concertgoers became enraged... myself included. They began throwing beers cans at the stage even hitting the dj and onstage security... myself not included. Two concertgoers then took to the stage attempting to steal the mic to announce, rather inaudibly, “They are not coming”, “There will be no show”.
All of a sudden the cans turned into glass bottles being hurled at the stage. Patrons attacked the dj tent and began looting the food and beverage tents. General admission ticket holders broke down the gate separating them from VIP… with the help of security I’m told, continued the madness. As the MC and DJ disappeared from the stage, the music was suddenly cut and stage lights turned off. You could see the crew backstage packing up their items and escaping through a secret exit.
As a confused witness to all of the madness, I slowly backed away from the stage, angry, but simply unsure of a lot of things… So, my boo Tarrus Riley... he really ain’t coming? How long have the promoters known about this? Will I get my money back? Will I get hit with a bottle? Will I ever get to see Tarrus Riley? Will I get home safely? What is that naked man doing? A lot of questions swirled in my head ... as this was a highly anticipated engagement for me almost a year in the making (since I missed him in Kenya last August).
And though it was quite a dangerous encounter, I managed to make it home unharmed, though terrified and noticeably upset.
Concert goers were unsure who to blame. The promoters made a public apology offering little explanation and compensation for the incident.
In fact, their statement quite suggested that it was the fault of the concertgoers who refused to be patient enough to enjoy the forthcoming show. But truth be told... there was no forthcoming show. If it hadn't started by 3 am (especially after the promotion team's claim of paying 40,000 Euro for the artists to perform) it wasn't going to happen. And an announcement then would have been courteous instead of a poorly written excuse after the fact.
Meanwhile, a video of Riley from Berlin surfaced to shed some light on the incident.
He says, he didn’t see the promoters until after the show. What’s up with that?
Whatever it is… the promotion team has offered a free show with Alpha Blondy… but to be honest, I don’t know AB and I cam to see Riley. And I don’t plan to put myself in that position again… therefore…they should really find a way to get us our money back.
Otherwise, I am pretty sure their career as promoters is more than finished.
What a bust.
Tarrus.. Tick tock, I'm waiting... raindrops no fallin'....why don't you come ova (to the stage at KICC Kenya)! Those were my sentiments.
I still love you tho!!
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