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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think Adele’s been shockingly unprofessional?

664 replies

AngeloMysterioso · 22/01/2022 08:31

Adele was due to start a Las Vegas residency at Caesar’s Palace this weekend and cancelled the entire thing less than 24 hours ahead of time, saying they weren’t ready for a number of different reasons.

FIL had bought tickets to the opening night for himself and MIL as a 40th wedding anniversary present, they had pretty much just checked into their hotel when she announced it wasn’t going ahead, and the cost of that and their flights is now money down the drain. DH and I and BIL and SIL were planning on taking them away for a family weekend at Easter but have instead offered to pay for travel and accommodation when (if?) it gets rescheduled.

I get that covid is fucking a lot of things up for a lot of people, but surely they could have faced reality a bit sooner? Even one more day’s notice would have saved so many people taking flights and checking into hotel rooms that they could have rebooked or been refunded for.

OP posts:
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HelloFrostyMorning · 22/01/2022 13:28

@Tsuni

BREAKING NEWS - celebrity is self-centred twat
Not all of them are.

And people who are NOT celebrities are self centred twats too.

JonSnowedUnder · 22/01/2022 13:31

For a performer like Adele it's about her rather than a big show, I'm not sure how someone with her resources (and CP) couldn't pull it off?

About 15 years ago DH and I were en-route to see The Police when we got a cancellation text. I was gutted as we were poor students but DH had always wanted to see them. They re-scheduled the concert but that meant 2 lots of hotel/travel costs which at the time wasn't easy. I was more pissed off as they said it was due to a throat infection - fair enough but then pictures came out in the papers of Sting a day or two before coming out of an Amsterdam brothel looking worse for wear.

OrangeShark27 · 22/01/2022 13:31

If the show is really that unready they couldn't sort something out they would have known weeks ago.

If she gets stage fright or has vocal issues this is fine, she doesn't have to do live performances. She could step back and just release albums if she still wants to continue making music. She might not make as much money but she will make more than enough. A year long las Vegas residency is not something you take on if you have vocal issues or severe stage fright

I don't mind if she's not a good business man. She's a musician. But again don't take on something you can't fulfill. Be honest, and don't try to manipulate people into feeling sorry with you. Things do happen, but this residency was hugely publicised and advertised and for something they were expecting people to pay 1000s of pounds for to be cancelled last minute because they weren't ready is ridiculous. They should have been ready weeks ago, with extensive contingency plans that take into account covid.

TwentyFirstCenturyTricoteuse · 22/01/2022 13:32

If it was something private she'd have been better off claiming health grounds, much less of a legal liability.

EinsteinaGogo · 22/01/2022 13:37

@Flocon

Maybe their insurance says they can't cancel until the last minute

This will be a massive financial cost for this - I'm sure the venue hire won't be cheap, on its own.

Contingency insurance doesn't usually pay out for 'shit planning'. Even if some of her staff had Covid on occasion, and delivery delays meant XYZ didn't arrive, shows go on in Vegas all the time - Kat Perry is placing right now - I can't believe they couldn't have customised and adapted.

I'd love to know more about who will eventually foot the bill.

peaceanddove · 22/01/2022 13:41

If only she had been performing in a city that was bursting at the seams with stage crew and musicians that were very practised at putting on big, Vegas style shows.

Oh, no wait.........

HintofVintagePink · 22/01/2022 13:41

Yanbu. Surely most people are over her by now?

Andtheyalllookjustthesame · 22/01/2022 13:41

After reading about the Katy Perry Vegas show. Now that is something I am sad to miss. Sounds like a real show of the life time.

I do like Adele's music, her voice to me sounds fragile even on recordings so I'm not sure she would be up to untouched live performance after suffering nodules previously. I do like oh my god and the video for that, this album seems very polished and a bit experimental at the same time. I like easy on me less. I can't see that she needed to cancel the whole tour. I do think there is a mental health element and she is well known for being an anxiety sufferer. Unfortunately some people have the talent and many skills to be a performer, but not the right temperament for the spotlight and reality of enduring herd work it is. Totally different than in the studio or making a music video.

She has a different talent from Amy wine house but same kind of era and a female singer as well, and although it's shit for Adele to cancel, I often wonder how different Amy winehouses story might have been if instead of being plied with alcohol and drugs to get through her shows she had just cancelled and looked after herself. Obviously we will never know, but when we take normal people and try to turn them into gods (or goddesses) we stop being able to see them as whole people who have their own issues

I think if I was Adele I might have a big fucking wobble too. Especially if the logistics were chaos, half the team had covid, i already had anxiety and stage fright and then to top it the stress lead me to 30 hours lost sleep and a bit of a sore throat. It's devastating for the fans of course, but she's just a person. Sometimes she'll be selfish and inconsiderate and useless and flaky and anxious and have a wobble from time to time. It's all got this level of extreme expectation. I couldn't be a celebrity for 5 minutes I know it would destroy me. I'm grateful to not have the kind of talent for anything that can propel you from normality to god like status leaving you struggling to catch up internally and crippled with imposter syndrome. It sounds shit. Maybe she needs to acknowledge she's just a studio singer now, but maybe she didn't know that until she risked it on a high stakes tour during a pandemic. Maybe she got caught up for a moment in believing her own hype and forgot to realise her fully human limitations until they got all too real.

I don't know. But I couldn't do it. Not for all the Money in the world.

CPL593H · 22/01/2022 13:49

[quote 100problems]@CPL593H I can't bring myself to watch.

Is there real crying or the reality/X factor contestant type crying where they sort of dab under their eyes and bite their bottom lip? I'm betting she's done a whole "non make up, but hellishly expensive leisure suit", possibly bare foot.[/quote]
No makeup-check. Leisure suit (possibly camo) -check. Not dabbing but no real eye contact, not looking directly at camera. Rambles a bit.

This is of course only IMO but I think it's evasive of whatever the real reasons are for this while trying to appear "sincere".

Sportslady44 · 22/01/2022 13:49

Cant stand her she is so overated and foul mouthed and horrible. Dragged her little boy into singing on her al bum about her divorce yuk.

she has a screechy horrible voice, i am sure there is someone better they could go and see.

Sportslady44 · 22/01/2022 13:51

@TwentyFirstCenturyTricoteuse

having an extraordinary talent like that

Lol at Adele's extraordinary talent. Maria Callas she ain't.

adele is a pop singer there are far better singers out there, opera singers for one but they dont earn anywhere near as much.

Overated and overplayed.

Emergency73 · 22/01/2022 13:51

This is what happens when music becomes overly commercial its more about the ££££ than integrity. Give me an small acoustic gig in a pub any day over this.

Sportslady44 · 22/01/2022 13:54

exactly and they richer they get, the more they want.

Perhaps she could have done a free concert or a very cheap one for thanking her fans for buying her music and putting her where she is now.

I wouldnt pay one penny to see her live.

DrSbaitso · 22/01/2022 13:55

@Emergency73

This is what happens when music becomes overly commercial its more about the ££££ than integrity. Give me an small acoustic gig in a pub any day over this.
But she's losing out on the £££££ by cancelling.
Livelovebehappy · 22/01/2022 13:58

Think she was hoping probably right to the end that things could be rescued, and it was a very last resort kind of situation. Maybe she was getting advice from her agent/management, so it might not have totally been her decision to wait until so late. Probably a lot of money lost by the organisers and management really didn’t want to cancel until it was absolutely evident that it couldn’t go ahead.

Motherdare · 22/01/2022 13:59

I can’t stand Adele’s voice but I feel very much in the minority. It’s just me I guess but the warbling and the way she sings in an American accent is just weird.

Emergency73 · 22/01/2022 13:59

The best live music gigs I’ve seen are : Marry Waterson/the Unthanks (even though I’m not a folk fan), Tom McRae, PJ Harvey. All amazing musicians who have evolved and stayed relevant. And are in it for love of music, not for love of fame and fortune.

Nocutenamesleft · 22/01/2022 14:06

@NotNowAlan

Surely it's not up to Adele to decide these things? She must have very well paid management who plan and oversee such massive and expensive productions. Can't see how she can be blamed if the show has to be postponed due to circumstances beyond her control? (and I'm not even a fan)
Yes and no

I worked in the touring music industry for over 20 years

Yes she can cancel a tour. But not without many people supporting her. In reality they can ‘make’ her tour. Insurance etc will be involved. Management. But she’s the front for it. Hence the video.

Sportslady44 · 22/01/2022 14:08

@VashtaNerada

I agree. I was thinking she could offer people a choice of rebooking for the full show or coming anyway and doing an ‘evening with Adele’ type thing where she chats, sings with minimal backup etc. For a fan that might even be more special! I can’t imagine paying all that money to go all the way to Vegas for that to happen.
an evening of her chatting, will she stop being foulmouthed she is such a turn off, and its so unecssary cant understand why anyone would want to listen to her talk.
Tsuni · 22/01/2022 14:10

*Not all of them are.

And people who are NOT celebrities are self centred twats too*

Thanks for that

XelaM · 22/01/2022 14:11

@Motherdare

"I can’t stand Adele’s voice but I feel very much in the minority. It’s just me I guess but the warbling and the way she sings in an American accent is just weird."

Not just you. Can't stand her croaking and all her songs are nearly identical

megletthesecond · 22/01/2022 14:15

I assume it's lack of ticket sales / stage fright / covid.
Looking back she announced the concerts at the the end of November. So fans only had a couple of months to afford tickets and plan travel in a pandemic, on top of usual Xmas spending.

It looks like Katy Perry announced her concerts late last spring, so fans had six months to get tickets.

Benjispruce5 · 22/01/2022 14:15

She should cover the costs. She can afford it.

Postdatedpandemic · 22/01/2022 14:18

The Caesar's Palace statement is very cool, calm and supportive, definitely written by their lawyers. She will not be getting out of the contract.

I do wonder if maybe there are plausible death threats involved. Frankly her video is unbelievable.

To think Adele’s been shockingly unprofessional?
Orcadianrythyms · 22/01/2022 14:19

She's the classic example of believing your own hype. Absolutely appalling to cancel with such sort notice, the diva shite with Spotify and dragging her poor child into her divorce album to make money. She's a good singer and if she really cares about her fans she'd have done an unplugged type performance for the people who spent their time and money on her. She's a disgrace for cancelling on people at that late stage and the on screen tears pushed me over the edge. No sympathy for her faux drama and all my sympathy goes to the people who spent their hard any money.