Patti LaBelle frantically rushed off stage mid-concert due to ‘bomb threat’
Patti LaBelle is frantically hurried off stage during the viral clip posted to Twitter. (Twitter/@sunny_seokkie)
A Patti Labelle concert in Milwaukee was abruptly cut short after reports of a bomb threat.
The 78-year-old R&B singer, appearing shocked, was frantically escorted off stage in a viral clip of her Saturday (10 December) live concert.
While talking to a member of the crowd about some flowers she had in her hand, LaBelle was interrupted by security guards who hurried her off the stage while she yelled “wait!”
The fan who tweeted the clip wrote that the venue had received a bomb threat but “nobody knew it in the moment.”
“They told us about a minute after they rushed her off the stage,” they continued.
The rest of the crowd was subsequently escorted outside of the venue with little information as to what was happening in the midst of the commotion
Another user who attended the concert wrote that fans didn’t know if they could go back inside the Riverside Theater venue and that “everything [was] on halt.”
In a later released statement on the situation, a venue spokesperson wrote: “Tonight’s Patti LaBelle show at the Riverside Theater has been postponed following a bomb threat investigated by the Milwaukee Police Department.
“We are thankful for the efforts of the Milwaukee Police Department and our customers and staff for their safe and orderly exit,” the statement continued. “We are working with the artist to reschedule the show.”
Milwaukee police reportedly cleared the rest of the venue after a spokesperson told CNN affiliate WTMJ that everyone attending the concert was safely evacuated.
An investigation is “fluid and ongoing.”
Social media users question why a Patti Labelle concert was targeted
Reacting to the news, social media users sent their wishes to LaBelle and those who attended the concert, with one writing that they “pray everyone is alright.”
“If something happened to her I would’ve lost it,” one user wrote, while another posted: “Hope everyone and Patti were ok.”
Others were dumbfounded that anyone would “target” Patti Labelle with such a threat, with some writing: “Why her out of anyone!?”
“No, but why at a Patti concert of all places,” another wrote. “Poor Patti.”
The often-described “Godmother of Soul” has not yet released an official statement on the matter.
The live concert came as part of her tour across the United States, where she is set to appear in Florida, New Jersey, New York, California, and many other states.
Tour dates currently end on 25 March 2023 in California, though it is uncertain whether the incident in Milwaukee will cause delays to future performances.
