Tones and I turned down an offer to perform at the NRL grand final after being approached less than a month before the event, her management has said.
The Australian singer had prior commitments in the United States with Macklemore and was unable to make the October 4 fixture at Accor Stadium work. The NRL will now proceed without a headline pre-game entertainment act.
Her management said the offer was made on September 5, adding that the artist had explored every option to accept it.
“Tones was recently approached to perform the pre-show at the NRL grand final. An offer was presented to Tones via management on September 5th,” her management said.
“Tones had a prior commitment with Macklemore in America and explored all avenues to make it work. Nothing was signed or confirmed in writing.
“Due to the last-minute nature and prior commitments by Tones, we were unable to accept the offer. We wish the NRL nothing but the very best for their event.”
People familiar with the negotiations, who were not authorised to comment publicly, said there had also been no agreement over which songs Tones and I would perform. They said she had not committed to singing Dance Monkey, her global hit.
NRL to donate $1 million to junior rugby league
The timing of the approach has prompted questions over why the NRL waited so close to the grand final before attempting to secure a major performer. The AFL, by comparison, booked Kylie Minogue for its grand final five months ago.
After talks with Tones and I failed, the NRL decided against assembling a replacement act at short notice. Instead, it will donate $1 million to junior rugby league.
Peter V’landys, chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, said he had already been considering whether to abandon expensive pre-game entertainment. He believes the money would be better directed towards the grassroots game, arguing that the match itself provides the entertainment.
The absence of a major act nevertheless means the NRL grand final will lack a traditional feature that has helped attract attention to the event in previous years.
