A Week To Have A Good Crisis PR Manager

It’s a week that started with an actor slapping and cussing out another actor on international live television. It was the slap seen around the world, and the world couldn’t believe what they saw and heard.

Beloved actor/comedian/rapper Will Smith got out of his near stage seat at the Academy Awards, walked on stage and slapped Chris Rock on live TV, then went back to his seat and cussed at Rock for 30 seconds.

Millions were watching this scene and thought it was some kind of joke. Then they saw it wasn’t. Could you imagine something like this happening at a Country awards show? Many may have wanted to, no doubt, but self-control kicked in. The slap is now television history.

A few days later we have CMA Entertainer of the Year Eric Church canceling a planned concert in San Antonio with just a few days’ notice so he can go see his favorite basketball team play. While hardly in the same category, this, too, is unprecedented.

The Foo Fighters cancelled all their upcoming shows due to the death of their drummer. Asleep At The Wheel had to cancel shows due to Covid-positive tests. All excused absences.

Church canceled so he can watch his favorite North Carolina basketball team play in the Final Four. He wrote his fan club a nice note, calling it “the most selfish things I’ve asked the ‘choir’ [fan club] to do.”

Eric got some bad advice on this move. Sure, the ticket money gets refunded, unless you bought from a scalper, them whoops. But it’s so many others that get hosed when you cancel.

Social media got fired up by fans losing money on non-refundable airline tickets, non-refundable hotel rooms, etc. Some are losing dollars they would make doing security or taking tickets at the show. Performers have a big obligation to day-hire crew, cops, spotlight operators, promoters, and on and on.

Tickets were given as Christmas presents, not to mention people tying the show into a vacation. There are many ways to give pain when artists cancel a show.

Sickness or death in the family? Sure. A basketball game? Don’t think so. How many of us have missed our children’s plays, games and more because we had to work. You are obligated to do the job, and make the appearance. You signed a contract.

A better gig comes up … whatever. Nope. I once saw an act turn down a million dollar date because they had to honor an older, lower paying booking.

The posts on Facebook and Twitter are not pretty: “This is not cool, man.” “We planned our whole vacation around this.” “If you had canceled earlier in the week we could have gotten our hotel money back.” “My husband and I have been waiting for years.” “Those tickets were Christmas gifts.” “Complete immature move.”

Being on time, and showing up are what professionals do. Missing great things on the weekends is one of the costs of doing what showbiz people do. It’s mostly a night and weekend job.

Post Covid rebuilding, the audience trust is job one. Pulling the rug out from under thousands of fans is unfortunate.

I’ve read more than once that, like Will Smith’s slap, we hope others don’t follow Eric’s lead and start cancelling shows because they have something else they want to do.

You do give up a lot of important family time with an entertainment industry job, which comes with the nights, weekends, the fatigue and the stress.

You agree to do a show and you go do it, and you never get out of your seat and slap/hit someone on stage because you don’t like what they did.

This is April Fools time, but no one is laughing!