Rapper says dates in other cities mostly sold out, but Hamilton, Ont., still has plenty of tickets available
Cardi B isn't playing around with her Canadian fans — and she's looking at you in particular, Hamilton.
The Grammy Award-winning rapper, who is in the middle of her Little Miss Drama Tour across North America, said while dates for many of the shows are selling out, one date in Hamilton, Ont., on Mar. 31 isn't doing the same kind of numbers.
Cardi B somewhat fumbled to give a stern warning to Hamilton-area fans in a now-expired Instagram story post which has been circulating on social media.
"And I'm letting you Canadians know, if you break my sold-out streak, I'm going to … I'm gonna …I don't know what I'm going to do," the rapper said through a smile. "But y'all better go buy them tickets."
Cardi B estimated that most of the dates for the tour are about "98 per cent, 99 per cent" sold out, while only about 80 per cent of the tickets at her Hamilton show at the city's TD Coliseum have sold by comparison.
While the exact percentage is unclear, maps on Ticketmaster of available seats for the Hamilton date viewed by CBC News show that there are still many tickets available. By comparison, there are only a handful of scattered seats available at a Toronto date scheduled for Mar. 30 — one day before the Hamilton concert.
Shows in Kansas City slated for Mar. 17, Chicago on Mar. 21 and Newark, New Jersey on Mar. 28 also have a small number of seats still available.
CBC News also reached out to Ticketmaster to help verify the estimated percentages, but has not yet heard back.
At the time of writing, there were a number of direct sale tickets available via Ticketmaster for about $118 (the cheapest price) in Hamilton, while the cheapest direct sale tickets in Toronto appeared to be priced at $314. Some verified resale tickets in Toronto were listed as low as $230 each, however.
Earlier in the tour, Cardi B made history by selling out two nights in a row at the Kia Forum concert venue in Los Angeles, becoming the first female artist to do so at that venue according to Live Nation. Recent concerts in Detroit, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Dallas and more were also sold out.
She also warned Vancouverites against breaking her sold-out streak ahead of her February date in that city. The fans heeded her warning, and Cardi B sold out that Feb. 21 date at Rogers Arena, too.
Despite the message from the rap star, Hamilton's mayor Andrea Horwath says her city is still a music-loving one.
"Hamilton has always been a music city, and since the reopening of TD Coliseum we've seen great crowds coming downtown for concerts and live events," Horwath said in an emailed statement to CBC News.
Hamilton-based multidisciplinary artist, hip-hop aficionado and community organizer Leon (Eklipz) Robinson agrees.
"I don't think it's a lack of love for Cardi B," Robinson said. "Entertainment is a beautiful thing and it gets people to think about other things and whatnot, but it's got to be fundable."
Robinson says the increased cost of living, especially the rise in grocery and gas prices, has likely contributed most to fans' willingness to spend money on tickets. He added that, the fact that other rap and hip-hop artists have successfully performed in the Steel City in the past should serve as proof that Hamiltonians do love the genres.
"Cardi B is a character.... I think it was really lighthearted, like, 'Yo, don't flop me,'" Robinson said.
While he hasn't seen any ads for the concert so far on local radio or online — which Robinson said could be another factor contributing to the lackluster ticket sales — he said Cardi's callout itself might help.
"[It'll] boost the sales and it'll probably end up selling out anyways."
Cardi B has a number of tour stops including in Chicago and New York City before she heads north for her Toronto and Hamilton stops at the end of the month.
