‘Poor weather’ blamed for sidelined Cebu artists at Wavy Baby music fest

James Reid

The Wavy Baby Music Festival, held on Jan. 13 and Jan. 14 at the North Reclamation Area in Mandaue City, Cebu, was met with controversy after several Cebu-based artists were sidelined during the event.

Inclement weather forced organizers to delay the opening of the first day, leaving fans stranded in the mud and throwing the music fest into chaos. Pictures also circulated on social media showing long lines and a muddy venue.

In a bold move, the Careless Music team made entry to the venue on the first day free to the public, but the original lineup for the festival was shuffled to adjust to the delays.

Ticket prices for the event were initially set at P2,770 for general admission and P8,000 for VIP, but on the first day of the event, organizers announced free entry to the public. To make up for this, ticket holders were told they would receive P2,000 worth of free drinks on the second day of the event. Prior to the festival, organizers had also announced a free “plus one” festival pass for tickets purchased between Nov. 24, 2022, and Jan. 12, 2023.

Following the incident, Careless Music founder James Reid issued a video apology on the festival’s Instagram page, acknowledging the “technical requirements, safety concerns and missteps” that resulted in some artists being unable to perform.

‘Beyond their control’

The Inquirer has reached out to the organizers, Eventscape and Careless Music, for additional comments on the matter, but has not received any response as of this writing.

On Jan. 14, Cebu-based artists Sepia Times, The Sundown and Three Legged Men apologized to fans on their official Facebook pages for being unable to perform on the first day of the festival. In separate statements, the artists cited factors that were “beyond their control.” Wonggoys, another Cebuano group, was also unable to take the stage but has so far remained mum on the matter.

Of the eight non-Careless affiliated Cebuano acts originally scheduled to perform, only four were able to take the stage: Urbandub and Franco, who are well-known on the Pinoy rock scene, rapper Cookie$ and Mandaue Nights.

On Jan. 17, Eventscape released a statement explaining what had happened during the event. “Our event venue, staging and programming were significantly impacted due to the poor weather conditions all over Cebu,” the statement read. As a result, the said organizer was forced to compress the show’s running time and cut some artists from the lineup.

“We would like to stress that it was never our intention to insult the international, Cebu and Manila artists who graciously accepted our invitation. Nonetheless, we apologize to everyone, especially to the affected artists and their disappointed fans,” the statement concluded.