After severe weather caused delays at Beyonce’s latest Renaissance World Tour performance, the superstar paid $100,000 to keep the DC Metro open for an extra hour to allow fans to get home after the show.
Beyonce paid $100,000 to keep all 98 trains in the Washington, DC Metro system operating for an additional hour on Sunday after her second Renaissance World Tour performance at the FedEx Field in Maryland was delayed due to heavy rain and lightning.
FedEx Field announced a shelter-in-place order at 6:40 PM, asking fans still outside to return to their cars and those already in the stadium to shelter under the ramps and covered sections while waiting for the storm to pass. The order was lifted nearly two hours later, with several people needing treatment for heat exhaustion and at least one hospitalized due to high temperatures, according to a local DC television station.
The DC Metro announced that the last train departing from the Morgan Boulevard station, the closest to the concert venue, would be delayed to 1:04 AM instead of 11:34 PM as a result, after having already extended service by 30 minutes before Beyonce’s team offered to foot the bill to extend service further.
“Due to severe weather, Beyonce’s show last night was delayed, and trains were extended by an hour,” tweeted the Renaissance World Tour fan account. “Beyonce funded the additional hour of Metro service, covering the $100,000 cost to run more trains, keep all 98 stations open for customers to exit, and other operational expenses.”
“We endured 2.5 hours of complete chaos to enter the stadium and get to our seats,” tweeted a fan at the show. “Beyonce knew it too. She started the show by saying, ‘Y’all been through a lot tonight, DC.’ She ended the show by saying, ‘Rain ain’t stop nothing!’ And she’s absolutely right. A show for the ages!”
On Sunday, in Maryland’s excitement to host the superstar, Governor Wes Moore declared August 6, 2023, as “Beyonce Day.”
The US leg of the tour kicked off on July 12 in Philadelphia and will conclude in Kansas City in October. Alongside Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, Beyonce’s Renaissance Tour is “supercharging” local economies. It is expected to earn over $2 billion — nearly $500 million more than Swift’s anticipated $1.6 billion in revenue, according to Forbes.