The Kid Laroi has apologised to his fans after causing fury for cancelling an $800 meet and greet after his Sydney show.
The Aussie music superstar, 21, infuriated his fans by calling off an exclusive VIP meeting at the last minute after his show at CommBank Stadium on November 16.
One fan took to TikTok at the time to share his dismay, claiming they were only sent a text message informing them of the news and were simply offered a signed poster in place of the $800 meet-and-greet.
Amid the uproar, Laroi has issued an apology to his fans who were due to meet him and has promised them a special consolation in place of the meeting.
A statement issued explained that Laroi was unable to take part in the planned event ‘due to unforeseen circumstances outside his control’.
‘I’m deeply sorry for any disappointment this may have caused,’ the singer added. ‘I love my fans and always look forward to connecting with them.’
He has promised that those who held the meet-and-greet passes will receive an email by November 22 with further information about their ‘special’ consolation.
Laroi – whose full name is Charlton Kenneth Jeffrey Howard – had taken to the stage in Sydney to give an electrifying performance as part of his The First Time Tour.
However, soon after the show, a TikTok user by the name of George999 took to the social media platform to share his fury about the meet-and-greet being cancelled.
The fan explained the unfortunate situation alongside images of his VIP passes for the highly-sought-after event.
‘We were supposed to have meet and greet tickets for $800…we got this message after lining up for an hour,’ he said, before sharing a screenshot of a text message that announced the cancellation.
‘The meet and greet is going to be cancelled and as a substitute we’re going to get a signed poster. Like, yeah, that’s a great replacement,’ the ticketholder added sarcastically.
‘This was all the information we got on the night and nothing about refunds or anything.’
In another gaffe, the fan claimed the organisers initially said the signed poster would be available from the VIP area, before clarifying that they would mail it out instead.
The disappointed fan then said he was more worried about getting a ‘f***ing refund’ for the $800 meet-and-greet.
Despite the issues for some ticketholders, Laroi delivered a dynamic blend of explosive pyrotechnics, heartfelt vocals, and sing-along moments on stage that shook Sydney’s CommBank Stadium to its core.
The Sydney-born rapper’s passionate energy brought the crowd to life, delivering a night of unforgettable music with his incredible 22-song setlist.
The night kicked off with his smash hit anthem Baby I’m Back and moved seamlessly into fan-favourite tracks including Girls and Tragic.
Laroi also showed his dedication to fan safety during the raucous gig as he paused and restarted his song So Done to address a serious crowd injury.
Footage shared to social media showed Laroi pointing in the audience and urging them to stop singing as he checked on a fan who appeared to be in difficulty.
Despite the music stopping, the crowds continued to belt out the lyrics to his hit song amid the silence, but Laroi steadfastly waited to make sure the fan was OK.
‘Sorry guys, give us one second, I think someone’s hurt, we’ve got to wait, one second,’ he told the audience.
After confirming the fan was OK, Laroi then said ‘alright let’s get back to it’, and restarted his popular track, sending the crowds wild.
He then closed the evening with an unforgettable rendition of Stay, Laroi’s mega-hit with Justin Bieber, bringing the entire arena to its feet.
Elsewhere in recent days, Laroi was nominated in four different categories at the 2024 ARIA Awards, including for Song of the Year.
However, his track Nights Like This was beaten in the category by Troye Sivan’s Something To Give Each Other.
Laroi was also nominated for Best Pop Release for Girls, Best Hip Hop/Rap Release for The First Time and Best Solo Artist, but failed to take home any of the awards.
