Entertainment / Music
Missiles fly at Ringo's gig
03 Apr 2016 at 11:57hrs | Views
LEGENDARY Afro-pop/jazz singer, Ringo Madlingozi, was forced to abandon the stage when fans started throwing missiles at him in Kimberley, in the Northern Cape, last week.
Daily Sun reported that the Sondela hitmaker was billed to perform around 5pm at the Diamonds and Dorings Festival, but only performed around 3am.
Witnesses said the problem started when there was a misunderstanding between Ringo and the organisers.
"Ringo was scheduled to perform around 5pm, but was told the programme was running late. He went back to the hotel, but organisers said he was late and couldn't perform," said a source.
Another source said when Ringo arrived, he wanted to perform before Nathi, but couldn't agree with him.
The source said when Ringo finally took to the stage in the early hours of Sunday morning, fans complained he had short-changed them and was drunk.
"They started throwing bottles and organisers had to whisk him away," said the source.
The award-winning singer took to social media the following day and apologised for the incident.
On his Facebook page, Ringo said he's never performed drunk or under the influence in three decades.
He wrote: I've never climbed any stage under the influence of alcohol or any substance that would alter my mind.
He said he wasn't feeling well, but was patient even though his performance time kept shifting towards midnight.
"When I couldn't take it any longer, I begged the organisers to respect my time. After losing my battle with them and feeling sicker, I asked my crew to take me back to my hotel," he said.
He said he took his medication and had a glass of wine to sleep.
"I was woken up around 1am, by an agent with a government official and two people who claimed to be events investors. I was threatened and forced to go back to the venue," he said.
Diamond and Dorings organiser, Somandla Sibisi, said: "As organisers, we don't want to entertain these issues through the media, but we'll talk to the artist himself without the third party."
Ringo told Sunday Sun he wasn't looking for an apology from the organisers but was apologising to his fans and to himself. "It was the first time in my life to," he said.
Daily Sun reported that the Sondela hitmaker was billed to perform around 5pm at the Diamonds and Dorings Festival, but only performed around 3am.
Witnesses said the problem started when there was a misunderstanding between Ringo and the organisers.
"Ringo was scheduled to perform around 5pm, but was told the programme was running late. He went back to the hotel, but organisers said he was late and couldn't perform," said a source.
Another source said when Ringo arrived, he wanted to perform before Nathi, but couldn't agree with him.
The source said when Ringo finally took to the stage in the early hours of Sunday morning, fans complained he had short-changed them and was drunk.
"They started throwing bottles and organisers had to whisk him away," said the source.
The award-winning singer took to social media the following day and apologised for the incident.
He wrote: I've never climbed any stage under the influence of alcohol or any substance that would alter my mind.
He said he wasn't feeling well, but was patient even though his performance time kept shifting towards midnight.
"When I couldn't take it any longer, I begged the organisers to respect my time. After losing my battle with them and feeling sicker, I asked my crew to take me back to my hotel," he said.
He said he took his medication and had a glass of wine to sleep.
"I was woken up around 1am, by an agent with a government official and two people who claimed to be events investors. I was threatened and forced to go back to the venue," he said.
Diamond and Dorings organiser, Somandla Sibisi, said: "As organisers, we don't want to entertain these issues through the media, but we'll talk to the artist himself without the third party."
Ringo told Sunday Sun he wasn't looking for an apology from the organisers but was apologising to his fans and to himself. "It was the first time in my life to," he said.
Source - Daily Sun
