The all-star tribute to David Bowie, which was announced just hours before his death, was held last Thursday at the 12th annual tribute at Carnegie Hall, New York City.
The concert was initially announced on January 10, as a retrospective of Bowie’s life, with hopes of Bowie himself attending the concert. However, the rock icon died of cancer hours after the announcement.
The concert quickly sold out, with an overwhelming amount of requests from performers to be featured in the tribute.
The concert featured a total of twenty artists, including rock legends such as the Flaming Lips, The Pixies, Debbie Harry, Cyndi Lauper and former REM singer Michael Stipe.
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So it came as no surprise that the mishmash of celebrities has spurted some behind-the-scenes drama, with hip-hop band The Roots pulling out right before the shows on Thursday.
The Roots ©Mark Seliger/NBC
According to Questlove, The Roots’ founder, the band’s decision to cancel their performance was due to disagreements with other acts on the lineup over studio equipments.
Questlove expressed his grievances on Instagram Thursday:
“I’ve never been so insecure or petty as to deny a fellow musician use of ANY of my equipment (or my band’s equipment—-or resources or contacts or knowledge or ANYTHING) it angers me when that same courtesy is not reciprocated.”
Nevertheless, the tribute turned out well, and due to high demands, a second concert was added Friday night at Radio City Music Hall and was broadcasted online.
