3RDEYEGIRL Apologize over Prince's Rumoured Toronto Show

BY Gregory AdamsPublished Nov 5, 2014

Sadly, as Toronto fans learned yesterday (November 4), the rumoured surprise Prince show at Massey Hall was indeed just that: a rumour. Shouldering the blame for the snafu that left hundreds of fans waiting at the box office in the cold and rain is the Purple One's backup band 3RDEYEGIRL, who have issued an apology explaining that they had only been undertaking rehearsals.

"We are thankful for the outpouring of love and support and apologize for any confusion surrounding the anticipated performance tonight," the group said in a statement.

It's further explained that the troupe's technical crew was brought out to Massey Hall to rehearse lighting and sound for "future performances," but a gig had never been formally announced for last night.

The source of confusion had been a since retracted post through 3RDEYEGIRL's Twitter account that read "4th day of November, we need a purple high: OTNOROT CALLING."

As you'll note, "OTNOROT" is Toronto spelled backwards. A listing had then went up on Ticketmaster for a Prince concert on Tuesday, while photos of 3RDEYEGIRL's drum kit set up inside the venue began to circulate over social media. Fans lined up in front of Massey Hall, where barricades had been set up on the sidewalk, before being told to go home around 3:30 local time.

Live Nation Ontario later confirmed over Facebook that the Ticketmaster listing was incorrect, and that "the only reservation was for a production rehearsal."

While fans may have been disappointed at yesterday's confusion, there's still a possibility of seeing Prince and 3RDEYEGIRL at a later date, though no details have been given.

"We love and thank our fans in Toronto," 3RDEYEGIRL concluded in the statement. "To all those who lined up and travelled in to the city for tickets, we hope to see you soon and are looking forward to bringing our show to Toronto in the future."

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