T-Pain will no longer be performing at this year's Spring Fling concert due to a "personal obligation that cannot be avoided."
According to Assistant Director for Campus Life John Wescott, T-Pain's agent Taylor Schultz informed Wescott of the cancellation in an email at 7 p.m. last night, clarifying that the obligation was T-Pain's son's birthday.
Tinashe, originally set to be an opener for T-Pain, will now be headlining the show, while Metro Boomin will join Amine as an opener, Wescott said.
"We are shocked that T-Pain will be breaching his contract with us. We had no reason to see this coming, as we were well underway in advancing the show with our production staff and his managers," Wescott told the Daily in an email. "In fact, we had just received his travel information earlier today."
Tufts University Social Collective (TUSC) Concert Board Co-Chair Alex Mitchell said he was shocked by T-Pain's cancellation, especially considering he had been booked since the end of October 2016. However, Mitchell tried to remain optimistic.
"We did our best to recover, and Metro Boomin will be able to deliver a good set, and we think Tinashe can hold her own as the headliner. We're disappointed that we lost T-Pain, but we're committed to maximizing Spring Fling given the circumstances," Mitchell, a junior, told the Daily in an electronic message.
According to TUSC Concert's yearly budget, $100,000 is budgeted for talent at Spring Fling. Mitchell stressed that T-Pain would not be receiving any of the money and that most, but not all, of the funds would be going to Metro Boomin.
Wescott also tried to stay positive in the face of the news.
"I know how much the Tufts community looks forward to Spring Fling each year and think that they will be very pleased with this lineup, maybe even more than they would have been with T-Pain’s performance," Wescott said.
Wescott stressed that there would be no changes in the ticket sales process nor to tickets already purchased. He encouraged students to contact the Office for Campus Life at ocl@tufts.edu with questions.
