On Wednesday, Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden initiated legal action against Madonna, concert promoter Live Nation, and New York's Barclays Center, the venue for her performance.
The tickets purchased by Fellows and Hadden indicated that Madonna's sold-out Celebration Tour show on December 13, 2023, was slated to commence at 8:30 p.m. local time. However, the 65-year-old singer did not grace the stage until after 10:30 p.m., with the concert concluding around 1 a.m., according to court records.
Fellows and Hadden contend that Madonna's delayed performance was inappropriate, causing inconvenience for "many ticketholders who attended concerts on a weeknight [and] had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day."
The disgruntled concertgoers claim they received no prior notice about the delayed start time. In addition to the sleep deprivation, the men argued they suffered legal harm as the late conclusion of the concert left them "stranded in the middle of the night."
In their lawsuit, Fellows and Hadden allege they were "confronted with limited public transportation, limited ride-sharing, and/or increased public and private transportation costs."
Had they been aware of the delayed start time, Fellows and Hadden assert they would not have purchased the tickets.
The lawsuit contends that Madonna exhibited a lack of concern for ensuring a timely or complete performance, and the defendants were aware that any stated start time for a show was, at best, overly optimistic speculation.
Madonna performed for three nights at New York's Barclays Centre, consistently taking the stage around 10:30 p.m. despite the advertised start time being two hours earlier.
The lawsuit accuses Madonna, Live Nation, and the Barclays Center of breach of contract, "unconscionable, unfair, and/or deceptive trade practices," negligent misrepresentation, and false advertising.
As of now, Madonna, Live Nation, and the Barclays Center have not issued public statements regarding the legal filing.
The lawsuit seeks federal class-action status and an undisclosed amount in damages.
This isn't the first instance of Madonna facing legal action over her tardiness. Previous lawsuits were filed in 2009 and 2020 by concertgoers who were dissatisfied with her lack of punctuality, according to The Guardian. Madonna is not the only artist with a reputation for tardiness; musicians such as Lauryn Hill, Guns N' Roses, Rihanna, and Snoop Dogg have also been known to start their concerts late, sometimes by several hours.
