Rihanna is having as tough a time selling concert tickets as she did last year. After her 2010 “Last Girl on Earth” tour hit problems with cancellations in Phoenix, Dallas, Atlanta, Denver and Indianapolis because of low ticket sales, it seems the pop princess still can’t pack an arena, even with new management from Jay-Z‘s Roc Nation.
Sources say after poor US concert pre-sales last month, Rihanna has been advised by her day-to-day manager, Jay Brown, to cancel domestic dates on her “Loud” tour.
“It has been a big disappointment,” our source said. “The ticket sales in big US cities like Boston are so bad, they will barely cover basics like the lighting and other arena costs. Tour managers are begging local radio stations to do giveaways.”
Rihanna is scheduled to perform at T.D. Garden arena in Boston on July 24 with Cee Lo Green. Only 3,700 tickets have been sold, and sources on the tour say she needs to sell at least 15,000 to break even. They expect more than a half-million dollars in losses from the Boston concert alone.
Rihanna split from her first manager, Marc Jordan, who launched her career, over a disagreement after her 2010 tour. A rep for Jordan declined to comment.
Her new manager, Brown, who is part of Roc Nation, is preparing to make changes, sources say. The tour starts in June 4 in Baltimore and heads to Canada and then around the US before moving to England in August.
But an insider said, “She should’ve been doing theaters and smaller venues. She’s not ready to headline an arena tour.”
Sources say while the ticket sales are sluggish, Rihanna is demanding all of the bells and whistles to make it a blow-out show. “It’s the normal diva requests,” an insider said, “which is tolerated, when you make money.”
Reps for Rihanna and Roc Nation declined to comment.