News Jay-Z Calls Out 9/11 Show Scalpers

tiger17 · 09-09-2009, 12:50 PM

Hip-hop superstar Jay-Z slammed scalpers on Tuesday who snapped up low-priced tickets for his 9/11 charity show at Madison Square Garden and began reselling them for a huge profit.

"We are truly disheartened that certain individuals would choose to benefit from what is meant to be a 100% charitable event," he said in a statement.

"We do not support any profits made from reselling any ticket that was meant to be purchased by honest fans."

Tickets to Friday's show were purposely set low at $54.50 to make it accessible to fans struggling in tough economic times.

The proceeds were to benefit the widows and orphans of New York City cops and firefighters who died in the line of duty.

The approximately 20,000 tickets sold out in moments on Tuesday and started showing up on resale sites for $200 to $3,000 - inflated profits that will go into the scalpers' pockets.

One site was offering tickets for $45,000 each.

"I don't think that's what Jay-Z's intentions were," said Maureen Brown, 48, of Harlem, one of several fans.

"I couldn't even get seats in the nosebleeds," she said, after spending 2-1/2 hours clicking her way through Ticketmaster's Web site.

A presale for Citibank cardholders was supposed to last from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., but Brown said she kept getting a message that said no tickets were available.

"I've never had any problems any other time. So who is getting these tickets?" she asked.

Kevin Lee, 39, of Harlem, said he was told at 9:01 a.m. there were no tickets available. Five other family members and friends were also trying - and failing - to buy tickets.

"I think something fishy was going on," Lee said. "I think the general public was really cut out. I guess you have to have deep pockets to get into this show."

John Neary, treasurer of the New York Police and Fire Widows' and Children's Benefit Fund, called the situation "a shame."

"But I don't think we can do anything about it," he said. "This happens with an awful lot of shows."

Jay-Z said he had taken steps to head off the ticket brokers.

"Tickets were consciously made available for sale as close to the concert date as possible to avoid traditional scalping," his statement said.

For those who can't be at the show - Jay-Z's only New York concert this year - it will be broadcast live on the Fuse network.

Brown, who took off work Friday because she anticipated getting tickets for the show, said she might just go down to Madison Square Garden anyway.

"I want to go down there Friday and see who is getting these tickets," she said.

source: nydailynews.com

ns_diplomat · 09-09-2009, 01:47 PM

why he mad at people tryna hustle

tiger17 · 09-09-2009, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ns_diplomat

why he mad at people tryna hustle

because nigga, real fans like myself missed out on coppin tickets, n plus the show for the widows n children of 9/11 and these niggas trying to make a hot dollar off them

0SiT0 · 09-09-2009, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiger17

because nigga, real fans like myself missed out on coppin tickets, n plus the show for the widows n children of 9/11 and these niggas trying to make a hot dollar off them

M.B.A.M niggaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Firefly5 · 09-09-2009, 02:11 PM

Jay should've known better.

09-09-2009, 12:50 PM	#1
tiger17 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Queens, NY Posts: 879 Repped: 224 Repped 228 Times in 69 Posts Blog Entries: 1 Neg Reps: 185 Neg Repped at 62 Times in 27 Posts	Jay-Z Calls Out 9/11 Show Scalpers Jay-Z Calls Out 9/11 Show Scalpers Hip-hop superstar Jay-Z slammed scalpers on Tuesday who snapped up low-priced tickets for his 9/11 charity show at Madison Square Garden and began reselling them for a huge profit. "We are truly disheartened that certain individuals would choose to benefit from what is meant to be a 100% charitable event," he said in a statement. "We do not support any profits made from reselling any ticket that was meant to be purchased by honest fans." Tickets to Friday's show were purposely set low at $54.50 to make it accessible to fans struggling in tough economic times. The proceeds were to benefit the widows and orphans of New York City cops and firefighters who died in the line of duty. The approximately 20,000 tickets sold out in moments on Tuesday and started showing up on resale sites for $200 to $3,000 - inflated profits that will go into the scalpers' pockets. One site was offering tickets for $45,000 each. "I don't think that's what Jay-Z's intentions were," said Maureen Brown, 48, of Harlem, one of several fans. "I couldn't even get seats in the nosebleeds," she said, after spending 2-1/2 hours clicking her way through Ticketmaster's Web site. A presale for Citibank cardholders was supposed to last from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., but Brown said she kept getting a message that said no tickets were available. "I've never had any problems any other time. So who is getting these tickets?" she asked. Kevin Lee, 39, of Harlem, said he was told at 9:01 a.m. there were no tickets available. Five other family members and friends were also trying - and failing - to buy tickets. "I think something fishy was going on," Lee said. "I think the general public was really cut out. I guess you have to have deep pockets to get into this show." John Neary, treasurer of the New York Police and Fire Widows' and Children's Benefit Fund, called the situation "a shame." "But I don't think we can do anything about it," he said. "This happens with an awful lot of shows." Jay-Z said he had taken steps to head off the ticket brokers. "Tickets were consciously made available for sale as close to the concert date as possible to avoid traditional scalping," his statement said. For those who can't be at the show - Jay-Z's only New York concert this year - it will be broadcast live on the Fuse network. Brown, who took off work Friday because she anticipated getting tickets for the show, said she might just go down to Madison Square Garden anyway. "I want to go down there Friday and see who is getting these tickets," she said. source: nydailynews.com

09-09-2009, 01:47 PM	#2
ns_diplomat Reppin' 514 Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: 514 - MTL - 514 Posts: 14,944 Repped: 664 Repped 1,321 Times in 537 Posts Neg Reps: 42 Neg Repped at 76 Times in 61 Posts	why he mad at people tryna hustle __________________ G-Unit/Shady/Aftermath!! "Shout out to all the people in Montreal - Montreal is real hood. Real gangsta out there." - Juelz Santana

09-09-2009, 02:11 PM	#5
Firefly5 Droppin' Knowledge Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Sacramento Posts: 4,103 Repped: 1,100 Repped 680 Times in 242 Posts Neg Reps: 57 Neg Repped at 22 Times in 20 Posts	Jay should've known better. __________________ San Francisco 49ERS 2009 NFC West Champs

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