This was the plan:
A political/business consultant from Waxhaw is organizing a Charlotte festival for conservatives that he hopes will provide “an alternative voice” the week thousands of Democrats are in town for their national convention.
Jason Lambert said “Rock the Red 2012” – planned for Sept. 5 in 11,000-seat Bojangles’ Coliseum – will feature as-yet-unnamed national conservative speakers as well as country and rock music acts.
This is the reality:
A local conservative effort to hold a concert rally in opposition to the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte has fallen through.
...
“They didn’t meet their financial obligations by the deadline we require,” said Kimberly Meesters, director of marketing for the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, which sent organizers the cancellation notice Wednesday. People who did buy tickets can obtain refunds.
This is the pathetic whiny victimy excuse:
For its own part, the Rock the Red organization is blaming the CRVA for blunders and a lack of promotional support that prevented ticket sales from taking off.
For example, they told TPM, the event’s Ticketmaster listing was mislabeled until last week as a Republican event — they have no direct affiliation with the GOP — and did not list the musical acts.
“So if you’d heard that the Charlie Daniels Band was coming to Charlotte on September 5th, and you wanted to go see him, you wouldn’t have been able to find that on Ticketmaster,” said John Snyder, an attorney retained by Rock the Red.
“The correct listing was not put up until last week,” Lambert claimed.
This is the eminently sensible retort from the CRVA:
The contract does not call for us to manage the marketing of the event.
Here are the organizers on Facebook, engaging in even more pathetic whining, finger-pointing, excuse-making and general ass-hattery:
It's with very heavy hearts that we must cave to the steep uphill battle we have been fighting for the past couple of months.
Rock the Red started with a mission to promote our best conservative candidates, and we STILL have that mission. We saw a great opportunity to energize the conservative base in North Carolina by providing an event that would be both exciting and informative.
Unfortunately the City of Charlotte (CRVA), Bojangles Coliseum, and Ticketmaster saw it differently. While initially appearing open to the event, attitudes quickly turned as promotion started. We were blockaded at every turn. It wasn't until a few days ago that we were even searchable on Ticketmaster, or that the correct event information was up, despite numerous requests. This, after being forced to pay thousands of dollars in legal bills to make Ticketmaster compliant with our event's unique mission, and reporting requirements.
Additionally, Bojangles Coliseum, after contractually agreeing to be paid the remainder of their fees the day of the event, demanded Rock the Red pay on Wednesday, Aug 30, with just 8 days notice. Also, the Coliseum responded to media requests, which is not customary, that the event was cancelled before Rock the Red had time to issue any statements.
Bojangles claims the change was due to low ticket sales on Ticketmaster. However, it was nearly impossible to find the event on Ticketmaster for ticket purchasers, and we received no promotional help as promised, contractually. In fact, much of, if not the entire marketing department for Bojangles was terminated shortly after we signed a contract. We made it very clear with Bojangles that Rock the Red was not a concert promoter, and we would need help.
Interestingly as well, Rock the Red was forced into an agreement with Ticketmaster by the Coliseum, which is owned by the city of Charlotte, due to their exclusivity rights.
Rock the Red wishes to honor our donors supporters by hosting an event at a different venue. We pray that with such little time and notice we will be able to accomplish this. We REFUSE to be bullied by the liberal city of Charlotte and their counterparts. We ask for your support, and help. Please join us, and we will keep you informed.
Lastly, we do thank you for your contribution to Rock the Red to support our conservative candidates. We hope you will honor your donation to the cause, and attend our next event. However, should you want a refund, please call (704) 612-0007 or email refunds@rockthered.com
Ah yes, Ticketmaster, that well-known librul cabal...