Bailey Zimmerman was unable to finish his recent show at the Delaware State Fair this past Sunday, July 26, and for once it wasn’t because of a hangover, a pending arrest warrant, or the weather.
The “Rock and a Hard Place” singer took the stage at the Harrington, Delaware, fairgrounds for just a few songs before a widespread power outage booted Zimmerman off the stage after just three songs, leaving thousands of fans in attendance upset and on the hunt for some sort of remedy.
Kudos to the Illinois-born singer who waited outside with fans while crews attempted to get the power up and running. Waiting things out on top of the stage, he shared his pack of Skittles with fans, shot out t-shirts from a cannon, took photos, and even attempted to perform without equipment.
One TikTok user captured the moment that the dreaded cancellation message from fair organizers was read over the loudspeaker, notifying: “Unfortunately, we will need to cancel the show. Please evacuate the grandstand area at this point in time.”
Zimmerman followed up on his Instagram story apologizing for the cancellation with a big thumbs down selfie, saying, “So sorry to all of y’all that showed up tonight in Delaware… city lost power, and there was nothing we could do.” Luckily, he gave fans a bit of hope, adding, “Gonna see about coming back cause we were just getting started and y’all deserve a show.”
Unfortunately, this teaser of a return from Zimmerman wasn’t quite the remedy many fans were looking for, as users flooded the Delaware State Fair’s power outage update post on Instagram, expressing their disappointment and requesting refunds for the incomplete show:
The power outage seemed to have stirred up quite a few scuffles in the crowd too, according to Delaware Online, which reported that allegedly two fights broke out, one “between juveniles over an autographed hat that resulted in minor injuries,” and the other between multiple juveniles and an adult. Unfortunately for distressed fans, no refunds are on the way per an official email from the State Fair, which notified concert-goers that they had “honored all of its contractual and financial obligations related to the event.”
They also extended their thanks to Zimmerman, his band and crew, along with the fans for their “patience, understanding and support.” However, considering pretty much every post on their Instagram since the incident has at least one comment demanding a refund, I don’t really think many attendees are fitting the “understanding” description.
For fans really hoping to still see Zimmerman, he’ll return to the East Coast for Musikfest in Bethlehem, PA next Thursday, August 6, followed by a stop in Columbus, OH on August 7.