Viral sensation Oliver Anthony has cancelled his upcoming show in Knoxville, Tennessee over steep ticket prices.
- READ MORE: Who is viral ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’ singer Oliver Anthony and why is he controversial?
The singer took to his Instagram to share a video telling his fans to avoid buying tickets to his forthcoming show at a music bar called Cotton Eyed Joe. Tickets were priced at $99, with meet and greets costing $199 each.
“I had to pull off on the side of the road and make this video. My adrenaline’s pumping, man,” Anthony said in the clip. “Don’t buy $90 Cotton Eyed Joe tickets or $200 for a meet and greet. That’s not acceptable. Just saw the Facebook post and lost my shit.”
He continued: “Miscommunication with my friend booking shows and I. My shows should never cost more than $40, ideally no more than $25. Hell, out of the 4 shows we have currently done, 2 of them have been completely free. This will get straightened out tonight. Hold off on buying tickets for now.”
As Stereogum reports, a spokesperson for the Cotton Eyed Joe bar took to their official Facebook page to address the situation. They said Anthony had allegedly agreed to play at the Knoxville bar for $120,000, citing that ticket prices needed to be that much in order to “break even and bring our customers a show we thought would be fun.”
They added: “To our talent agency and promotor friends that follow us… be careful booking the North Man of Richmond.”
Anthony responded to the situation on his official Facebook page and announced that the show was cancelled, claiming it was his fault for not being more “directly involved with the venues who have reached out”.
Cotton Eyed Joe has been cancelled. Ultimately, it's my fault for not being more directly involved with the venues who…
Posted by Oliver Anthony Music on Monday, September 11, 2023
“My plate has been full and I delegated the responsibility to someone else to help me book. I am not pointing fingers at Cotton Eyed Joe, I don’t know where the miscommunication took place,” he said.
“I’m just upset seeing those prices. We will find another place in Knoxville area that can do $25 ticket and free meet and greet. I will work to get your tickets refunded from my own budget if they can’t. This will never happen again. Thanks for your patience. I am still learning how all of this works.”
Anthony joined Papa Roach and Shinedown for an acoustic performance of a few songs in a car park at the rain-affected Blue Ridge Rock Festival last Saturday (September 9). They played a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘Simple Man’ as well as Papa Roach’s ‘Last Resort’.
Oliver Anthony’s viral hit ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’ was released on August 8, and has since hit Number One on the iTunes Country Charts, soared to the top spot on Apple Music’s Global Music Charts, and racked up over 32million views on YouTube.
The post Oliver Anthony cancels show over ticket price, performs for free with Papa Roach instead appeared first on NME.
