Travis Scott has announced a gig at the beleaguered Co-op Live music venue, despite ongoing issues which have led to its opening being postponed.
The US rapper will bring his Circus Maximus Tour to the arena in Manchester on 13 July – one of 12 new UK and European dates announced on Tuesday.
It comes amid problems which have pushed back the opening of the £365m Co-op Live venue.
The arena was scheduled to launch with shows by comedian Peter Kay in April – but these were postponed due to power testing falling behind schedule, bosses said.
Gigs by artists including Olivia Rodrigo, Keane and Take That have also been affected.
The new music venue – which is set to become the largest in the UK when it does open, seating 23,500 people – has said it will now open on 14 May, when British rock band Elbow are scheduled to perform.
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Last week, the venue said it would be taking “a short pause to events… to fully ensure the safety and security of fans and artists visiting the venue”.
American rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie had been cancelled at the last minute the previous day, due to a “technical issue” during a soundcheck.
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Tim Leiweke, chairman and chief executive of US-based venue operator Oak View Group, apologised for the delays and to “all those that have been affected” and said staff were working “incredibly hard” to get the building ready for 14 May.
“As many of you will know, it’s not been the smooth start we had planned for, and I know that has caused a huge amount of disruption and frustration to thousands of people,” he said.
The issues began following a test event in April which led to Co-op Live announcing it would have to reschedule Kay’s stand-up shows. These were first moved to later dates in April before a second rescheduling to 23 and 24 May.
A gig by The Black Keys has also been moved to 15 May. Rodrigo’s 3 and 4 May dates were postponed, while A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s 1 May performance took place three days later, having moved to the city’s AO Arena.
On 2 May, a Keane gig scheduled for 5 May was postponed, while several Take That concerts have also been moved to the AO.
The Eagles, Nicki Minaj, Pet Shop Boys, Liam Gallagher, Pearl Jam, The Killers and Eric Clapton are among the big-name acts scheduled to perform at the venue in the coming months, but so far only a test event by Rick Astley has gone ahead.
The arena’s general manager Gary Roden announced his resignation last month.
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A Co-op Group spokesperson previously said: “Co-op is a sponsor and does not own or run the venue, and we have made it clear to Oak View Group, who are responsible for the building, that the impact on ticketholders must be addressed as a priority.
“We are pleased that they will shortly be putting plans in place to do so.”
They added that safety checks would be independently verified so Co-op members and other ticket holders “can be reassured that the venue has the very highest levels of security and safety measures”.
