A performance by the Nigerian artiste Joeboy at the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival was abruptly cancelled on Saturday after his DJ uttered a profanity on stage. The incident occurred at the Pigeon Island National Landmark, where Joeboy was scheduled to perform as part of the festival lineup.
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In an Instagram post, Joeboy said that he was unaware of any restrictions on the use of vulgar language on stage. He said that his DJ had encouraged the audience to “make some f****** noise”, but he quickly apologised when he realised his mistake. However, the organisers cut off his microphone and prevented him from continuing his performance.
Joeboy expressed his regret and disappointment to his Saint Lucian fans, whom he said he had travelled more than forty hours to entertain. He said that he had been eager to perform and that he hoped to return in the future.
The organisers have since issued an apology to the artistes and patrons who were affected by the changes to the World Beats Schedule, which resulted in the cancellation of some performances.
The festival organizers said that the schedule was based on a predetermined running order that all artistes were expected to follow. However, due to technical and artiste coordinating issues that were beyond their control, the organizers said they had to make difficult decisions to bring the show back on track.
Thaddeus M Antoine, the chairman of the festival, said that they regretted the inconvenience and dissatisfaction caused by the adjustments and that they would try to redress them by engaging with the affected artistes. He said that the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, which sponsors the festival, was in contact with them to ensure they fulfilled their obligation.
Joeboy confirmed that the tourism authority had been courteous and helpful in resolving the situation.