On the eve of the highly anticipated kickoff concert for World Pride 2025 in Washington, D.C., headlining artist Shakira has canceled her performance due to unforeseen equipment difficulties. The concert was set to take place at Nationals Park on Saturday night, marking the start of the World Pride festivities. The cancellation was announced by the Capital Pride Alliance which is the principal organizer of the event, expressing deep disappointment in a statement released on Friday.
The reason behind the abrupt cancellation appears to be linked to complications from Shakira's previous concert in Boston's Fenway Park, which was also called off just hours before its scheduled start. In fact, a concurrent concert on Friday night for country star Jason Aldean at Fenway faced a similar fate. According to the Capital Pride Alliance, the logistical issues stemming from Shakira's earlier show have made it impossible for her full tour production to be relocated to Washington, D.C., in time for the performance.
The Capital Pride Alliance further asserted that despite this setback, the full slate of events planned for the opening weekend of World Pride would continue as scheduled, although the kickoff ceremony would need to be relocated and restructured. This cancellation poses additional challenges for the organizers, particularly in the context of existing anxieties within the LGBTQ+ community regarding attendance. There have been concerns that international attendance could diminish due to apprehensions related to the political climate, particularly the administration's stance on LGBTQ+ rights.
The worries stem from President Donald Trump's policies, which have drawn criticism for their adverse effects on transgender protections and other LGBTQ+ rights. As a result, two international LGBTQ+ organizations—Eagle Canada and the African Human Rights Coalition—have cautioned potential travelers against visiting the U.S., fearing that trans or nonbinary individuals might encounter difficulties at border control, especially if strict binary gender definitions are enforced by immigration officials.
Some participants from abroad have already made announcements regarding their intention to skip this year's events, either due to fears of harassment or as a form of protest against Trump's policies. Nevertheless, a call for a mobilization of domestic participants to fill the capital has also been made in light of these international concerns.
To enhance security, Ryan Bos, the Executive Director of Capital Pride Alliance, indicated that security fencing would be erected around the final two-day concert and rally taking place along a multi-block stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue. Notably, the early hotel reservation numbers for the weekend of June 6-8, originally reported as lower than the previous year, have begun to show an upswing, according to Destination D.C., which monitors hotel bookings. Destination D.C. President Elliott Ferguson noted that there seems to be a last-minute surge in reservations, particularly among the national community.
Ferguson surmised that the expressed fears about international participation might have invigorated local and national communities, prompting them to want to come to Washington, D.C., in larger numbers. As the scheduled events approach, the Capital Pride Alliance remains focused on ensuring that the weekend's festivities will proceed successfully, despite the disappointment surrounding the sudden cancellation of Shakira's performance.
