Anita Baker fans were “pissed” this past weekend after the singer and her team pulled the plug on her “An Evening with Anita Baker” concert 15 minutes before curtain call.
The event was originally slated for Saturday, May 11, the day before Mother’s Day, in Atlanta, leaving hundreds of fans in an uproar as they walked out of the State Farm Arena. Many who purchased tickets for themselves, or other moms blasted the Detroit vocalist online, calling her “unprofessional” for the last-minute change.
Event organizers cited “late, unforeseen circumstances” in a statement posted on the X platform around 6:54 p.m., six minutes before the scheduled start time of the show at 7 p.m.
Fans were already at the venue which holds over 26,000, hoping to see the eight-time Grammy winner perform classics like “Sweet Love,” “Caught Up in the Rapture,” and “Giving You the Best That I Got.”
Those who put on their best outfits in celebration of Mother’s Day and came out did not hesitate to take to social media and blame Baker, believing she was at fault.
“Yallllllllll why Anita Baker cancelled this f—king concert right before it was supposed to start,” one agitated person posted on X.
— State Farm Arena (@StateFarmArena) May 11, 2024
Another user wrote, “Soooo Mom’s Mother’s Day Present was tickets to the Anita Baker concert tonight, and after making us stand there for over 30 minutes after doors were supposed to open they just CANCELLED the concert outright.”
The woman added, “I feel bad for the arena staff tho bc people are NOT happy.”
A third person said, “Anita Baker is the [GOAT emoji], but cancelling a Mother’s Day Weekend show, 15 minutes before start time is about as unprofessional as you can get. (Assuming that she didnt have a last minute health or family emergency just before the show).”
The rumor mill went in overload as whispers where generated around why the concert didn’t happen.
“Girl not Anita Baker cancelled on Atlanta,” one post read. “And they saying she not even in the STATE.” Another suggested, “She didn’t even show up for her mic check.”
Some people were just livid and could not hold it together.
“I’m p—sed. Anita ball headed a— done cancelled the concert,” said Atlanta business owner Tamara Jackson in a TikTok video.
Jackson continued, “I’ve been waiting for her since January, and her ball headed a— cancelled. Look at us, we all standing out here ready, waiting and her ball headed a— cancel concert last minute. Pissed, pissed Anita! Run, me my money.”
While the influencer was upset, once her video went viral, she issued an apology to the soul singer, using her own song. “Operator, get my auntie on the line,” she began. “I admit that night I was out of control but I still love Anita with all my body and soul.”
A few individuals slammed critics who called out Baker online, suggesting there might be a valid reason she canceled the concert. “If we find out Anita Baker is sick, is she still gonna be a bald head b—h?” said one.
This is not the first time that Baker has been at the center of a scandal connected to her performances. Normally, she’d take to social media to respond to criticism about her concert antics, such as folks who called her out for removing Babyface from her tour last June, leading to months of scrutiny.
“Imagine yo aunties going to see Anita Baker and she canceled at the last minute But wait she cussing her out to I apologize is so 2024,” said one individual on X. “I know Babyface is somewhere sipping on tea right now.”
Babyface went on to do his own tour and dispelled any ongoing speculation of a fallout between him and the veteran entertainer he has “much love and respect for.”
“It was Anita Baker show from the get-go. She asked me to join her, and that’s what I did,” he explained later on “The Jason Lee Show.” “I did not come on there with the intention I’m a co-headliner. It was her show, that’s clear, and I have no problem with that.”
Also last year, Anita Baker was scheduled to perform at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex in Greensboro, North Carolina, but reportedly arrived nearly 2 hours late, according to fans.
Once on stage, she spent a significant amount of time going back and forth with the concert’s production team.
In footage from the Nov. 18, 2023, concert, Baker can be seen giving instructions to the tech crew while singing, such as “It’s coming from the aux” and “Remove the aux.” She also called out one of the workers, stating, “You’re looking at me; you’re not doing anything.”
A month later, she snapped out at a concertgoer, sitting in the front row of her Houston concert that she caught filming her sing on a cellphone. At first, she let the fan videotape her without saying anything, but then she sang in the mic, “Turn off the camera, baby. I don’t know who you are. Move back, get ’em back.
The person would not stop and then she said, “Security, help them out, and I mean out of my front row.”
The next week, Baker told her fans that reason why she is often late for show, is because fans are also late. She claimed her contracts state that she is “prohibited” from taking the stage until 70 percent of the audience had arrived.
“*Contractural Provisions, for SOLD OUT Arenas* Performer is *Prohibited* from taking the stage until 70% of the House is present,” she wrote. “We’re not late, just in Compliance with Contract. I Love Youuuu. See ya Soon.”
Although details regarding the circumstances Atlanta concert cancellation remain undisclosed, ticketholders can anticipate receiving refunds on the original payment card, as confirmed by the organizers.
