By Alanna Rizza
After the date for 6 Fest was pushed back three weeks, many Ryerson students have expressed concerns about disorganization and poor planning.
“I’m really irritated. I had to book off the original date from work, so when I found out a week before that it got changed, I didn’t know what to do,” said second-year business management student Jessica Wernick.
Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU) president Obaid Ullah said that the RSU is working with some of the best people in the music industry and that planning and organizing such a big event takes time.
“I understand people are upset, but we (the RSU) aren’t a big events company, we are trying our best,” he said.
The date was changed to Oct. 9 and 10 and it’s created conflict because some students are no longer able to attend. Students are also having trouble getting refunds.
“I’ve emailed them [the RSU] three times so far and haven’t received a response,” said third-year law and business student Shiwar Jabary. “I’ve also personally messaged them on Facebook and they ‘read’ my message.”
“I feel scammed.”
But the date isn’t the only concern. Students are also frustrated over not knowing the concert’s venue.
“I still have no idea where I’m going to stay during the event because I don’t know where it is. As for the artists, I find it annoying because I’d like to know what I’m paying for,” Wernick said.
Students also took to the 6 Fest Facebook event page to express their frustration with being uninformed about other concert details.
“Y’all are fucking wildin’, we have no venue, no headline, had to go through hell to get those damn tickets and now you’re moving it to Thanksgiving weekend. Change the event name to 6mess,” wrote second-year journalism student Adjani Donna.
Ullah said that the location of 6 Fest has been confirmed but it can only be announced closer to the concert date because of security concerns.
“Everything is done. We are just waiting to announce the artists and the rest of the ticket sales,” he said.
The RSU’s budget for 6 Fest is about $1.5 million. A portion of this comes from sponsorships and the remainder—approximately $1.1 million—will come from ticket sales.
Pre-sale tickets cost about $40 and 9,000 tickets have been sold. Ullah said that the second-tier tickets will be about $66. He also said there will be a small number of VIP tickets available.
The event is being capped at 15,000 attendees.
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