PARIS — Live Nation has postponed two Lady Gaga shows in Paris this weekend because of the strikes and protests in France over the plan to raise the retirement age.
The Oct. 22 and Oct. 23 shows at Paris Bercy have been postponed until Dec. 19 and Dec. 20 “as a result of the logistical difficulties due to the strikes in France,” said a Live Nation statement on Lady Gaga’s website.
“Unfortunately, as there is no certainty that the trucks can make it to the Bercy for this weekend’s shows, the Lady Gaga performances are now postponed,” said the statement. Fans must exchange tickets or seek refunds by Nov. 14.
Students have been protesting at plans in the pension reform bill to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62.
The French protests against proposed new legislation are now affecting the music sector, with strikers attempting to block the distribution of gas in the country for over a week now. Around 5,000 of France’s 12,300 gas stations were completely or partially running out of fuel on Wednesday, according to the French ministry of Ecology and Energy.
Lady Gaga’s concerts are the only major shows to be affected so far in France. The strikes have prompted live bookers to find alternative solutions for other artists, such as using personal cars on tour for French breakthrough act Ben L’Oncle Soul.
A tour manager was slightly roughed up by strikers while driving a van for another artist — whose name was undisclosed — and required hospital treatment. It was a rare incident, the booker spokesperson stressed, adding that the concert was not canceled.
The French government has promised the situation will be back to normal within four days.
