Nicki Minaj blames runway and customs delays for Montreal show starting hours late
Flight mishaps happen to the best of us, but typically there are not 20,000 fans waiting at the Bell Centre for the person on the plane.
Runway and customs hang-ups were to blame for Nicki Minaj taking the stage hours late in Montreal on Wednesday night, said the 41-year-old rapper originally from Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago.
As fans waited past 11 p.m. for Minaj, whose show was scheduled to start at 8:30 p.m., she posted on social media that her flight at around 1 p.m. was delayed until 5 p.m., and then when her team got to the plane, they were told it would be delayed further.
"When we got to the plane, they then said they were 'STILL FUELING,'" Minaj wrote on X.
Minaj would have likely went on stage around 9:30 p.m., as there were opening acts that began playing at 8:45 p.m.
When arriving in Montreal, Minaj said the delays continued at customs after she landed, and that "they did a bunch of stuff they didn't do the last 2 times I came."
"They started searching through my personal purses," she wrote. "Usually, they take me to the car with my purses & check the bigger luggage. Nope. Not this time. They know I have a show, they know we're 20 mins away. They know we don't have a police escort."
As her fans waited in their seats past 11 p.m., Minaj posted to her "barbz" (fans) that she "can't wait to see you."
"The sabotage be real but GOD IS REALER," she said. "We're going to have a magical night. Love you. My apologies. I'm going to get to the bottom of this when I get off stage."
She strolled on stage at just before 11:30 p.m. and finished after 1 a.m.
It is the second time in recent months that a major show at the Bell Centre has started late. Madonna took the stage around 10 p.m. for a show that was supposed to start at 8:30 p.m. Fans in New York are suing the singer over her tardiness for the show there.
The Montreal fans seem to have been forgiving on Minaj's lateness.
"It was a blast! Well worth the wait," said Kristina Kaitlyn Glen, who went to the show with her sister.
"Wow and they tried to stop this amazing wshow from happening!!!" wrote one fan who attended the show. "But God had different plans!!!"
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Slovak defence minister says doctors are fighting for life of prime minister who was shot
The Slovak defence minister says doctors are fighting for the life of the country's prime minister, who was shot multiple times after a political event Wednesday afternoon.
Transport Canada's UFO 'lead' planned to meet with U.S. intel officials, called info requests a 'wild goose chase'
Canada's transportation department had a UFO 'lead' who tried to 'quell' media interest and planned to meet with U.S. intelligence officials.
'Very expensive lunch': Sask. driver handed a cell phone ticket for using points app in McDonald's drive-thru
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
'The Fly' has become notorious in France after a brazen escape. What's his criminal history?
A prisoner nicknamed “The Fly” has become notorious in France overnight after a daring and bloody escape from a prison convoy in Normandy that left two guards dead.
BREAKING Ontario's 'crypto king' Aiden Pleterski arrested
Aiden Pleterski, the self-proclaimed 'crypto king' from Whitby, Ont., has been arrested in Durham Region after allegedly running a Ponzi scheme worth more than $40 million.
BREAKING Barge hits a bridge in Texas, damaging the structure and causing an oil spill
A barge hit a bridge in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, spilling oil into surrounding waters and closing the only road to a small island, officials said.
Person responsible for 1996 drugging of 'Titanic' crew likely not a local: Halifax police
Halifax Regional Police believe a non-resident could be responsible for the infamous drugging of numerous crew members of the 'Titanic' movie with a hallucinogenic in 1996.
Latest updates on the biggest wildfires burning in Canada
Thousands of people in Western Canada remain displaced from their homes as wildfires threaten their communities, triggering evacuation orders and alerts.
OPINION Your attention span is shrinking, studies say. Here's how to stay focused: Sandee LaMotte
Regaining your focus requires you to be mindful of how you are using technology -- a daunting task if you consider the average American spends at least 10 hours a day on screens.