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Thursday November 9, 2017

SOME tickets for JAY Z’s concerts in the United States are being sold for as little as US$6 in a bid to cut out touts.

It’s led to some fans asking whether deals to see the 4:44 album tour on pri-mary and resale sites are real.

By charging more for VIP tickets and less for cheap seats, thereby making spots accessible for more fans, concert promoter Live Nation hopes to drive touts out.

Secondary ticket sites and scalpers will be left with bottom-feeding ticket prices, (often for seats in the upper levels).

The Weeknd, One Direction, Radio-head, Tool, U2 and Coldplay have all

used similar strategies to try to eliminate expensive resale tickets.

However, it’s unclear whether the low prices will block touts from buying up all the cheap tickets and selling them for more.

There has been some confusion over the cheap tickets. Some believed JAY Z’s gigs weren’t selling well.

However, Live Nation told U.S. maga-zine Billboard that just three concerts in, the 4:44 tour was the rapper’s high-est grossing solo tour ever, beating his 2013 Magna Carter concerts by up to 21 percent.

Another superstar who tried to coun-ter the ticket resale problem, Taylor Swift was criticized for an anti-ticket tout scheme in the United States, which required fans to earn “boosts” to improve their chances of getting tickets to her concerts.

The boosts included posting about her on social media, watching her new video and buying her album or merchandize.

Ed Sheeran used strict rules around entry to try to counter the problem. He asked fans to bring four forms of ID for his most recent U.K. tour.

(SD-Agencies)

JAY Z sells US$6 gig tickets to cut out touts

THEY have had a lot of attention since the show started last year — not all of it welcome.

A furore has erupted after some of the young stars in “Stranger Things 2” were sexualized in the press and social media, while others have experienced the glare of fame in everyday life.

Shannon Purser, who plays Barb in the series, responded to one Twitter user who criticized her co-star Finn Wolfhard after the 14-year-old failed to stop for photos outside his hotel and was branded “rude” by the user.

“No actor is under any obligation to stop for anyone. Finn is an incredibly kind human. But he’s human and he needs breaks too,” she wrote in a tweet.

In a number of tweets, she expressed how she too gets the same treatment from over-excited fans, but is better equipped to deal with it.

“Game of Thrones” actress Sophie Turner also backed him up in a lengthy

thread, writing: “It doesn’t matter if they are an actor ... they are kids fi rst. Give them the space they need in order to grow without feeling like they owe.”

Wolfhard, who plays Mike, hasn’t responded to the comments about him greeting fans, but did have something to say about a fl irtatious message from model Ali Michael.

The 27-year-old said in an Instagram post that he should “contact her in four years,” when he will be 18.

He said in a video published by TMZ that being propositioned in that way was “nuts” and that he found Michael’s com-ments “gross.”

The model later apologized, saying in a statement to Teen Vogue that it was

“never my intention (nor has it ever been) to sexualize a minor in any way, shape or form.”

Purser’s comments from the weekend sparked a wider debate about how the show’s young actors are portrayed.

One of the show’s teen stars, 13-year-old Millie Bobby Brown, has been listed as one of the reasons TV is “sexier than ever” by W magazine, among a group of much older actors including Nicole Kidman and James Franco.

Mara Wilson, who starred in “Matilda” and began acting when she was 5 years old, gave her response to how young stars are treated. “It’s really not that hard not to sexualize children and teens,” she wrote. (SD-Agencies)

‘Stranger Things’ cast respond to fan criticism and ‘gross’ sexualization

ACTRESS Asia Argento has described a report that Harvey Wein-stein used ex-Israeli agents to spy on his accusers as “terrifying.” The New Yorker reporter Ronan Farrow has published a story claiming Weinstein used private investigators to try to cover up sexual abuse claims.

The Italian actress and director has accused Weinstein of rape.

Weinstein’s spokesperson denied that “any individuals were targeted or suppressed at any time.”

In his New Yorker story, Farrow alleged that the fi lm producer employed two intelligence compa-nies, Kroll and Black Cube, to try to collect information on several women and on journalists trying to expose the allegations. The New Yorker said they included former members of Israeli spy agency Mossad.

In a statement, Black Cube told the BBC it was its policy “never to discuss its clients with any third party, and never to confi rm or deny any speculation made with regard to the company’s work.”

But the company said it “does not get involved in family disputes or sexual harassment cases” and “applies high moral standards to its work, and operates in full compli-ance with the law of any jurisdiction in which it operates.”

Weinstein’s spokeswoman Sallie Hofmeister dismissed the report, saying: “It is a fi ction to suggest that any individuals were targeted or sup-pressed at any time.”

(SD-Agencies)

Weinstein accuser says spy allegations

are ‘terrifying’

JAY Z

(From L) “Stranger Things” cast Gaten Matarazzo, Noah Schnapp, Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour and Caleb McLaughlin.