Bieber Breaking Hearts Again
In the words of Justin Bieber himself, “is it too late now to say sorry”?
Just a few weeks ago, the Biebs took to his Instagram page to announce the cancellation of his meet and greets during his upcoming Purpose World Tour in North America later this year. He said that meet and greets make him feel “so drained and unhappy” that it leaves him “exhausted to the point of depression”. But is this anything to be surprised by? Judging by his track record of bad behaviour, it definitely doesn’t look to be…
Nevertheless, the cancellation has left Beliebers completely out of pocket and getting nowhere near their money’s worth. The two VIP packages that used to include a meet and greet, as well as merchandise, VIP access, front row seats, and a limited edition engraved plaque, costed a whopping $1,197 AUD right up to $2,640 AUD. Ticket holders to Bieber’s concerts were offered a full refund, however that would mean forfeiting their ticket to the concert altogether.
No one could have been more upset than six young women from Canberra and Sydney who spent over $30,000 AUD to fund a trip to the United States to see five of Bieber’s concerts. The girls each purchased Ultimate and I’ll Show You VIP Packages for concerts in Miami, Hartford, Atlantic City and two at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Alana Beaton is among those six Aussie women who worked multiple jobs in order to save enough money for the overseas trip. The 21-year-old public servant and Belieber from Canberra started an online petition to seek justice for VIP package holders, which gained over 2,700 signatures.
Alana has been one of Justin’s biggest Beliebers since 2009 and has seen him perform a total of 13 times so far. She has also met the pop star five times.
I sat down with Alana to discuss exactly what happened and find out why she is so upset by the situation. Through Alana’s words it becomes apparently clear that despite this shocking experience the cult of Bieber is still alive and well.
Q: What was your initial reaction when Justin cancelled the meet and greets?
A: Honestly, when I first read Justin’s Instagram post about cancelling his meet and greets, I was just plain mad at him. I was so angry at him for agreeing to do them in the first place and couldn’t believe he thought it was OK to just pull the plug and let so many fans down.
After a few days though, I got a better perspective on the situation. He’s been showing signs of depression and anxiety for quite some time now, and his mental health is so important to me, so my anger was no longer directed at him for cancelling. I completely understood why he wouldn’t want to stand there like a cardboard cut-out and get groped by hundreds of fans every night when he wasn’t feeling up to it.
My anger at this point was directed at his manager, Scooter Braun and the company who provided the VIP Packages, Bkstg. I was angry at them for, at that stage, not offering any form of compensation whatsoever to the VIP package holders. They just wanted to make as much money out of Justin as possible without caring about his well being. Us, as customers, were so mistreated throughout this situation. At first, Bkstg changed the VIP Packages to include a “VIP Hangout” with Justin’s dancers and stage crew, in lieu of the Meet and Greet, with no form of partial refund being offered as compensation. This is when I cracked and started a petition on change.org.
Q: Why did you decide to start a petition?
A: I realised on Twitter how many fans were in the same boat as us and how angry we all were at Bkstg for their pathetic refund policy. People were tweeting #BkstgLawSuit so much that it was a trending topic on Twitter. No one really knew what to do or how to get through to them, as they were just ignoring our emails or sending auto replies, so I thought if we came together they might listen. Essentially, the main reason why I decided to start a petition was to demand partial refunds, as a hangout with his dancers was not fair compensation when we paid top dollar to meet Justin Bieber himself. Before too long, Bkstg changed their partial refund policy and implemented partial refunds. However, in doing so they also cancelled every other aspect of the VIP “package” leaving us with nothing but an incredibly overpriced seat. I have now updated the petition and am fighting for our merchandise back, as well as a fair partial refund.
Q: What does Bkstg’s partial refund for the Ultimate and I’ll Show You Packages involve?
A: The refunds are only $500 USD for the Ultimate Package and $375 USD for the I’ll Show You Package, which wouldn’t have been too bad except they have also now cancelled all other VIP inclusions as well, leaving us with nothing but a ticket for $700 USD – $1,500 USD. We understand why Justin cancelled the meet and greet component, we just don’t understand how that can justify not even giving us our VIP merchandise anymore. We also have the option to receive a full refund and forfeit our ticket completely but that also isn’t fair as the shows are now sold out.
Q: You’ve spoken very honestly about how you feel across your social media channels and in the media, which has garnered a lot of good and bad attention. How do you deal with all the hate you get from fellow Beliebers and people who you may not even know?
A: I either ignore it by not even reading it or try educating people on my side of the story. A lot of people at first glance think I’m angry or upset with Justin because of all of this and they hate on me for “not caring about his mental health” when really it has nothing to do with him personally. This is all about Bkstg and his management, not a personal attack at Justin. The good feedback I’ve received far outweighs the hate I’m getting. I’ve had so many fans personally thank me for speaking up on behalf of everyone affected and that makes it worth it.
Q: Do you think this situation has negatively affected the ‘Belieber’ fandom?
A: It has definitely caused some tension and a bit of a divide between fans but we’ve been through a lot as a fandom and I think we’ll be OK once it blows over.
Q: Has this changed how you feel about Justin at all?
A: It hasn’t changed my love or support for him, no, but it has given me more of an insight into the industry. I feel so bad for him and just wish I could save him from the shitty management he’s contracted to. Everyone is just sucking the life out of him and pulling him in every direction to try and profit as much as they can from him. It’s very sad to see, as he’s such a sweet person.
#bkstglawsuit #purposetour @scooterbraun @bkstg pic.twitter.com/51qb4Vz834
— SIGN PINNED TWEET (@TheAlanaBieber) April 17, 2016
Q: How do you hope this situation is resolved?
A: I hope that Scooter Braun and Bkstg cut their losses and do what’s right by the fans who are the reason for their artist’s success. I am fighting for a 50% refund plus our VIP merchandise back in good faith, as compensation for the stress and disappointment caused by this situation. I have told Braun and Bkstg that I am open to negotiate with them but if they don’t make further contact I will be taking legal action in the form of a class action lawsuit against Bkstg and Scooter Braun, as I will not sit back and let a multi-million dollar company take advantage of their customers who are mostly a young, female demographic. I do want this to be resolved before I have to take that step though.
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