Madonna Fan Files Lawsuit Accusing Her of Exposing Concertgoers to ‘Pornography Without Warning’ at Shows
Madonna is facing a class action lawsuit filed by a fan who claims the pop star deceived concertgoers with “false advertising” to a series of her Celebration Tour shows held in California earlier this year. The plaintiff, Justen Lipeles, alleges that the Queen of Pop and her promoter Live Nation “lulled” concertgoers into buying “expensive tickets” to her shows at four California venues, which “purposely and deceptively” withheld information in its marketing.
According to the lawsuit, Madonna and Live Nation failed to inform ticket purchasers that the singer’s scheduled shows would not start on time “as promised,” instead having fans wait until after 10 p.m. for concerts to begin. The complaint also states that Madonna lip-synched during parts of the show, and the air conditioning was turned off, creating an uncomfortable environment for the audience, which resulted in some people becoming physically ill.
Lipeles accuses Madonna of subjecting concertgoers to “pornography without warning,” including topless women on stage simulating sex acts. He claims that neither he nor other concertgoers knew what to expect ahead of the show on March 7, 2024, at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.
In January, Madonna was sued by two fans who accused her of starting another concert on her Celebration Tour late at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, claiming “false advertising” for beginning a scheduled 8:30 p.m. concert at 10:30 p.m. Live Nation was also named in the lawsuit.
Three months after the filing, Madonna’s legal team filed a motion to dismiss the two fans’ claims, claiming their accusations were not justified.
“Nowhere did Defendants advertise that Madonna would take the stage at 8.30 p.m., and no reasonable concertgoer — and certainly no Madonna fan — would expect the headline act at a major arena concert to take the stage at the ticketed event time,” the star’s lawyers stated, per court documents obtained by PEOPLE.
Marcus Corwin, the two fans’ attorney, previously told PEOPLE that his clients would file a response to Madonna’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit within 30 days. “We believe our response will address the issues raised in the MTD and that when the Court is fully briefed, we will be able to proceed with this action and obtain compensation for those ticket holders seeking refunds,” he said.
After the January lawsuit, Live Nation issued a statement to PEOPLE, saying, “Madonna’s just completed, sold out 2023 Celebration Tour in Europe received rave reviews. The shows opened in North America at Barclays in Brooklyn as planned, with the exception of a technical issue December 13th during soundcheck. This caused a delay that was well-documented in press reports at the time. We intend to defend this case vigorously.”
