Even though Enrique Iglesias pulled out of Britney Spears‘ tour just hours after it was announced this morning, sources tell Billboard.biz that negotiations are under way that could result in a Spears-Iglesias trek taking place this summer, after all.
While some of the sticking points may be related to money — and whether Iglesias would receive a percentage of the “back end” or box office receipts in addition to a per-show guarantee — much of the problem seems to stem from perception, a source said.
Iglesias is a headlining artist and has been for some time, and would carry his own fully themed production on the tour. The language in the carefully-worded press release — which was withdrawn from certain outlets shortly after it was sent today — stated the pair would “tour together” but stopped short of calling it a “co-headlining” tour, the phrase commonly used for such superstar pairings as Billy Joel and Elton John, for example.
The general perception is that it’s a Britney Spears tour: She’s the headliner, she would close the show, and the announcement was timed with her appearance on “Good Morning America” and the release of her new album “Femme Fatale,” both of which took place today.
And, according to sources, Spears’ pay is several times what Iglesias would earn.
At press time, representatives for both artists and the tour’s promoter had not granted Billboard.biz’s requests for comment.
