At the beginning of 2021, DaBaby could lay claim to being one of the hottest Hip Hop acts in the country. By July of that year, ill-advised comments at the Rolling Loud Miami festival derailed the rapper’s push toward the top.
It now appears DaBaby’s fanbase in one particular city has shrunk to a dismal level. According to Nola.com, a concert scheduled for September 2 in New Orleans will not happen. The cancelation was likely because of poor ticket sales.
The website reports only several hundred tickets had been sold for the show at the 14,000-seat Smoothie King Center. Both the event’s promoters and DaBaby’s team have offered explanations for the show being “postponed.”
Greg Pulver of Clear Bizness Entertainment cited “a number of business reasons” for the concert no longer taking place on Friday. He also claimed to be working on rescheduling the concert with DaBaby still possibly performing.
Andrew Lieber, the CEO of DaBaby’s booking agency, claimed the “Rockstar” hitmaker’s representatives called off the appearance because of a contract dispute. The MAC Agency founder insisted his client will be back in New Orleans in the near future.
DaBaby’s downfall as a mainstream music act hit its zenith at Rolling Loud Miami 2021. During his set, the Charlotte native made perceived homophobic comments about people living with HIV/AIDS. He apologized for his statements before backtracking on that apology.
Prior to the Rolling Loud controversy, DaBaby earned #1 albums on the Billboard 200 with 2019’s Kirk and 2020’s Blame It on Baby. However, 2022’s Better than You collaborative mixtape with YoungBoy Never Broke Again barely cracked the Top 10.
“Rockstar” featuring Roddy Ricch rose to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2020. Only DaBaby’s “Ball If I Want To” single has made it into the Top 40 since July 2021.
The southern rhymer scored a Top 5 entry on the Hot 100 as a feature on Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” collaboration. That song peaked at #2 on the chart dated May 22, 2021.