‘Mixed messaging’: Madonna fans left confused, frustrated about 2023 tour ‘pause’

Madonna fans around the world are waiting to hear any news about the Material Girl’s health and her upcoming world tour, which was scheduled to start in Vancouver on July 15.

Since announcing last week that the 64-year-old singer had been admitted to intensive care due to a serious bacterial infection, fans have been Hung Up on if Madonna is OK and what to do with their tickets.

Edmonton resident Kane Blacque has been a fan of Madonna his whole life and planned to fly to Vancouver with friends to see her.

“As a member of the LGBTQ community and growing up and, you know, in care and child welfare and all of that my entire life … as somebody growing up and coming into their own person, Madonna was like the mother that was never there,” he told Global News.

“She is a huge pillar in the gay community, (a) huge gay activist for gay rights and human rights and that’s very attractive to people like … and her tours are awesome and her music videos are awesome and provocative and controversial. So who wouldn’t love it, right? You either love or hate her.”

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Blacque said when he and his friends heard about Madonna’s greatest hits tour, they knew they had to attend.

“If anybody is familiar with Madonna and her touring reputation, the last tour that she had, that was really controversial because she would cancel a lot of the shows and she was late for a lot of the venues and, you know, made a lot of fans upset,” Blacque said.

He and his friends had an inkling that something might force Madonna to cancel the first show and when they heard she had been hospitalized, they didn’t know what to think.

“This was the most important thing for us this summer to do,” Blacque added. “We’re only going to Vancouver for a couple of nights. We have lives and jobs here in Edmonton.”

When tickets went on sale, the Edmontonian talked to friends to find out who wanted to go. He would purchase all the tickets together and then divide up the costs for airfare, car rentals, hotel rooms and reservations at Rogers Arena to have drinks together before the show.

Friends were coming from Edmonton, Winnipeg, Kelowna and Blacque said their airfare tickets are not refundable because they chose the cheapest option when they booked the flights back in January.

He said the tickets for the show itself were also expensive, costing “about half a paycheck,” he added.

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But for Blacque and many others, the biggest frustration is the lack of communication from Madonna’s team about what is happening.

In a statement to Global News, Rogers Arena staff said the only information they have at this point is that the tour has been postponed and they cannot comment further.

Any mention of the tour has been removed from the arena’s website but Ticketmaster is still selling tickets to her shows.

Promoter Live Nation said in an email to Global News that as of Thursday, all dates on the tour are postponed.

Once a new date is announced, or if new dates aren’t announced within 60 days, fans will be able to request a refund, the company said.

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But that still leaves a lot of unanswered questions.

“It’s all mixed messaging from everybody and nobody knows what’s going on because her team has been silent since her manager announced on Instagram of all places that she was sick and in the hospital and that they were going to be putting a pause on the tour,” Blacque said.

“What does that mean? Does that mean that they’re pausing the tour and they are going to come back with rescheduled events? Nobody knows because they haven’t released any official comments.”

Blacque said he and all of Madonna’s fans are very concerned about the superstar’s health. They are frustrated and angry with her management and tour organizers.

“We deserve an update. Give us an update. Just something. Let us know how she’s doing,” he said.

They have decided they are going to go to Vancouver for the trip, even if they don’t get to see their favourite singer perform.

“I’m genuinely concerned about her health, just like anybody else, whether they’re a celebrity or someone you know or a complete stranger,” Blacque said.

“I just kind of wish her team was a little bit more concerned and compassionate about our situation.”