(Toronto) Live Nation is remaining silent after two artists associated with Kendrick Lamar said their dates at its Drake-affiliated History venue in Toronto were cancelled at the last minute.
A representative for the global promoter and owner of the concert venue ignored multiple requests from The Canadian Press seeking clarification as to why fans of Schoolboy Q and Sir were left stranded just hours before each of their scheduled shows, July 18 and 30.
Both artists are signed to Top Dawg Entertainment, a Los Angeles record label that helped propel Lamar’s career, leading fans to speculate that the interrupted concerts were collateral damage in the ongoing musical feud between Drake and the singer. Not Like Us.
Live Nation did not respond to questions about the reason for the cancellations or whether fans blindsided by the change would be compensated for associated hotel or transportation costs.
The History venue opened nearly three years ago and was billed as a collaboration between Live Nation and the Canadian rapper for a state-of-the-art facility that can accommodate more than 2,500 people.
PHOTO MARK BLINCH, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Drake
Since then, it has become a go-to venue for all genres of music, but particularly for emerging hip-hop and R&B artists, including artists associated with Drake.
Shortly after his concert was canceled Tuesday, R&B singer Sir apologized to his Toronto fans in a social media post. He wrote that he didn’t know why the venue canceled the event, adding in another post that he was still being paid.
“They do NOT like us,” he posted on the X-rated platform, referring to Lamar’s summer hit that fueled the Drake feud.
Suggestions that History might be showing loyalty to its hometown star began to surface after Los Angeles-based rapper Schoolboy Q’s concert was canceled in mid-July.
Lamar’s longtime friend then took to social media to suggest that the cancellation was related to ongoing tensions in rap. He suggested that local police didn’t want anyone connected to Lamar’s Toronto show.
Toronto police spokeswoman Stephanie Sayer denied the suggestion Wednesday, saying in an emailed statement that “the decision to cancel these events was made solely by the venue, not the Toronto Police Service.”
“While we work with event organisers to ensure all necessary safety measures are in place, security around these events is managed by the venue,” she added.
A night before Sir was scheduled to perform at the venue, a concert featuring Florida rapper Ski Mask the Slump God gained attention online when his opening performer, DJ Scheme, launched Not Like Us Lamar’s as the crowd sang along.