CHARLOTTE — It was rockin’ and rollin’ at PNC Music Pavilion Tuesday night as Dead & Company with John Mayer jammed on stage, but a different jam kept some fans from seeing the show entirely.
Channel 9′s hearing from fans who say there wasn’t enough parking, and they’re upset they didn’t get to see the Dead’s final tour. But it’s not just this show — we’ve heard from fans who say they missed the Janet Jackson show earlier this year, as well.
Many of the fans tell us they come to PNC Music Pavilion all the time, and they wanted to know what might be causing these issues.
(If you weren’t able to see the show, check out the gallery below)
“Who’s gonna tell them there’s no parking?” a person can be heard on video from a fan who drove all the way from Greensboro to see the show.
The line on the interstate to get into PNC Music Pavilion Tuesday night was, according to another fan on video, “a cluster.”
Fans say they waited in the car line from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. before being turned away at showtime by an officer at the venue who said there was no more parking.
“I’ve been to lots of shows there, I’ve never had this problem before,” said Liz Mattson. “I’ve been to sold-out shows, I don’t know what was different last night.”
Mattson was dying to see Dead & Company’s final tour, but she says she never even got into the parking lot.
“We were sitting in traffic at 5:45 and then we just sat there, sat there, sat there. By that point, we could see that nothing was happening, there was no turning whatsoever,” Mattson told Channel 9′s Evan Donovan. “It was about 8:15 by that point, and we just called it, said this is not going to happen.”
We found dozens of pictures and complaints on social media about last night’s show and about the Janet Jackson show three weeks ago.
PNC Music Pavilion is operated by Live Nation, which offers season passes where fans can sit on the lawn for nearly any show all summer, and that included Janet Jackson and Dead & Company.
Mattson showed us her tickets, and she spent $341, including $73 in fees.
Live Nation did send emails to ticketholders advising them to get there early because of expected high traffic. The company says it also secured extra parking for the Dead & Company show to accompany the “Shakedown” street market that accompanies their shows.
“We had an amazing start to our summer concert season with two, incredible sold-out shows,” said a statement from Live Nation to Channel 9. “We understand that traffic delays and parking issues can be frustrating for fans. When we have a sold-out show, we increase staffing and parking access, and we always encourage fans to arrive early and consider carpooling to avoid traffic.”
Mattson says she may ask for a refund, but she says she’s not sure if she’s entitled to one.
“I think they usually say it’s at your own risk, but from my perspective, if parking was part of that ticket and that’s part of a contract, then they didn’t fulfill their half of it,” Mattson said.
(WATCH: Two shot, others hurt after fight during Asian Doll concert at Livingstone College, police say)
©2023 Cox Media Group
