A small Irish festival in Co. Galway has issued a statement following days of controversy surrounding an appearance by Wild Youth, Ireland’s Eurovision entry.
It had been claimed on social media that the Irish chart-toppers were "too intoxicated to perform" at what was their second set of the day following an evening performance in Co. Cork.
Though Wild Youth were booked to perform at Ballygar Carnival from 12:30 am, the four-piece took to the stage almost one hour later before performing a curtailed set.
Ballygar Carnival Committee has since issued a statement on the matter on its social media channels, confirming that following professional negotiation “a settlement” had been reached between the committee and the band.
The committee pointed out that Wild Youth had also offered to perform a free event in Ballygar as a gesture of goodwill but unfortunately, it was agreed that it was not logistically possible to make that happen.
The statement from the committee noted: “Wild Youth, who were scheduled to take to the stage at the Mattie McDonagh Centre at 12:30 a.m. arrived into Ballygar very late after an evening gig in Cork. Wild Youth was booked to play a performance of a minimum of 90 minutes, however, they took to the stage at 1:18 a.m. and finished at 2:08 a.m. The committee were very disappointed that the stage time and set length were not adhered to by the band as per their pre-agreed contract. We the committee understand the frustration of those who attended on the night.”
It’s always very important to remember that just because something is tweeted does not mean it’s always true. It’s not right that what’s put on twitter is becoming gospel nowadays 1/2 https://t.co/oqYSSFJbP0
— Wild Youth (@bandwildyouth) August 10, 2023
The Ballygar Carnival Committee went on to “acknowledge the courteous and polite behaviour of the band towards the committee and stewards when they arrived into the building. We also accept that we, the committee, did not do enough to ensure a secure and safe stage area during setup and performance.
“Following on from countless media articles, we would also like to confirm that no member of the committee had reason to believe that members of Wild Youth were too intoxicated to perform, and for the duration that Wild Youth were on stage, the committee were satisfied with their performance.
“After professional negotiation with the band and their management agency, we wish to confirm that we have reached a settlement regarding the matter.
“Ballygar Carnival would like to thank the community for their continued support of the festival. We would also like to acknowledge and appreciate the amount of kind messages the committee has received over the past few days. We are already looking forward to the 80th annual Ballygar Carnival in 2024 and will announce at a further date the plans to utilize the financial settlement that was reached,” concluded the statement.
Wild Youth has also taken to social media, stating: "It’s always very important to remember that just because something is tweeted does not mean it’s always true. It’s not right that what’s put on Twitter is becoming gospel nowadays."
A second tweet by the band in relation to the matter reads: "In the midst of everything we didn’t get to apologise to everyone who went to the Ballygar Festival for arriving late to the stage. Things ran over throughout the day and we are deeply sorry to anyone who bought a ticket and felt let down."
In the midst of everything we didn’t get to apologise to everyone who went to the Ballygar Festival for arriving late to the stage. Things ran over throughout the day and we are deeply sorry to anyone who bought a ticket and felt let down. WY x
— Wild Youth (@bandwildyouth) August 11, 2023
