Monday, 27 March 2017

Fans, LyndaHere And Bootlegging At Concerts...

Lynda Elstad or LyndaHere has bootlegged twice in the last couple of weeks with little regard for other fans, the wishes of the venue or the musicians and artists. 

First she bootlegged and took photographs at the 'Come From Away' musical on Broadway in New York City during the production and towards the end. They were distributed on social media including The Online Kitchen Party Great Big Sea Community Forum Facebook page. Anyone interested in this production can already find a lot of professional reviews that contain professional photographs and videos in quality online publications. LyndaHere's bootlegs and photographs would have not added anything new to the story. Maybe I am one of the few, but I would find it particularly annoying and rude if someone continued to take photographs during theatre or a musical.

Now she has bootlegged and taken photographs of Alan Doyle performing new music again with little regard for the venue policy and his wishes about how it should be seen and heard. The policy of the Tupelo Music Hall states that they do not allow videotaping without the consent of the artist. I have included a screen shot from their webpage. LyndaHere to the best of my knowledge has never gained consent from Alan Doyle or his management to bootleg. Her endless photographs and bootlegs posted on her Twitter account and posted to Alan Doyle have not been responded to in the past two and a half years. I would gather then she does not have permission. But off she goes. It it unfortunate that her endless bootlegging and photographs often of really poor quality is endorsed by some fans. An example of her poor quality and disappointing bootlegs were of the Great Big Sea reunion in New York City.

I have copied a post I wrote a couple of years ago about a discussion the fandom had during the Australian Indoor Garden Parties. LyndaHere did not take too kindly to suggestions she refrain from bootlegging taking and photographs.







A response to @lyndahere’s latest blog post on Between The Rock…the OZIGP. Friday, 24 January 2014.


“That way, if viewing said images offends any delicate sensibilities, said offendees can simply Cease and Desist before arriving at that disconcerting juncture. I’m reasonably sure they will be able to survive the one view- of Alan with which I began this part of the blog”. LyndaHere... Between the Rock January 2014.

I have just read @lyndahere’s latest blog post about Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Parties at Coffs Harbour in Australia Part 2 23 January 2014. It is on the eve of Murray Foster’s Cocksure Lad’s CD Launch in Toronto which she has informed us she is attending via Twitter, flying from St John’s, Newfoundland to Toronto. She is staying overnight before returning and attending another concert in St John’s on the following night in the hope of seeing Alan Doyle. @lyndahere uses her blog as an opportunity to attack the fandoms once again when the issue of appropriate conduct at concerts is raised on social media.

I have decided to respond to her blog post via this blog as she doesn’t take too kindly to any discussion that doesn’t support her own views and behaviour. @lyndahere to me seems to exist in a magical world where she is entirely right regardless of the country she is in, what the laws say, the venues say, the fandom say and most of all the musicians and artists she professes to love say. After providing a detailed list of her self-indulging concert going across three continents that gives her a sense of entitlement and establishes herself as the big name fan, there comes an attack on the fandoms, followed by the tantrum chucking and name calling to anyone who makes a suggestion or criticism that her conduct is not wanted by either the fans or the musicians and artists involved.

In this blog post @lyndahere refers to a discussion on social media about the ethics of photographing and bootlegging at the concerts in the fandom a ‘stink’ and those that raised it ‘stinkees’. Time and time again individuals within these fandoms, not just the Russell Crowe fandom but others too, have raised the issue of appropriate conduct at concerts, bootlegging and photographing have been bullied into silence all because they have a moral and ethical conscience and want to do the right thing by the musicians and artists. Calling fans ‘stinkers’ and ‘stinkees’ is the stuff of little children and their playground world. It is outright rude and would do nothing to endure Alan Doyle to new or other fans, and in particular Russell Crowe fans.

“My course of action was then to get a few photos and videos of any new songs (and Alan’s song, since people who have no clue about him or his solo career will watch anything connected to Russell Crowe) if I could do so discreetly enough as not be seen thereby trigger a “She’s got a camera so I get to use mine too!” avalanche of souvenir-photo-seeking from fellow audience members. Which I did, by hiding my camera down low on my knee, in full view of every single person on the stage but out of sight of the audience members Spirit of the Law, Not Letter of the Law.” LyndaHere


I am wondering why she thinks Australians shouldn't take photographs for personal use at an event in their own country? Are they not entitled to a souvenir photo as Americans and Canadians have done before her? And there lies the problem for musicians and artists. @lyndahere has a hundred explanations for justifying what she does travelling the world photographing, bootlegging and writing reports. There is one rule for her and one rule for everyone else. I find these justifications interesting because she is personally alienating many people who are and could be fans due to her uncompromising conduct in concerts and online including myself. There are many ways for people to say no and for someone who professes to know these musicians and artists on stage presence intimately, @lyndahere is not reading their body language on stage or their social media responses particularly well.

I have made this point before in previous blog posts about what a ticket means but @lyndahere doesn’t seem to get it. The price of the ticket and venue holder’s requests does not include the right to photograph and bootleg performances. Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea do not have to inform her not to take photographs and bootlegged videos. She has stated she understands this in this instance. She knows the rules and procedures for taking photographs and recordings. It isn’t about asking permission from the theatre. It is her responsibility as a ticket holder as I understand it, to apply for permission through a license to record and take photographs and respect their right to say no. If @lyndahere applied for a licence in accordance with law then she would know what the musicians and artists wanted and not second guess them.

As @lyndahere states and others have stated Russell Crowe can be very particular about cameras and taking photographs. That is his right. These are his concerts in his adopted country. However, as @lyndahere has shown in the past it doesn’t matter what the musicians and artists want. She totally disregards it anyway and does exactly what she wants because well @lyndahere knows best. And this time fans chose to speak up and say photographs and bootlegging should be taken with permission from those involved. Fair enough. There are no rights for ticket holders beyond admittance to the concert. @lyndahere has in the past photographed and bootlegged the Indoor Garden Party concerts to death, choosing to put up entire shows and take hundreds of photographs. Most musicians and artists don’t seem to mind people taking a couple of photographs and even a video for personal use. However, @lyndahere takes an excessive amount. I have also heard they are making a movie of the Indoor Garden Parties. And despite the fact @lyndahere would have known this she chose to ignore it.

@lyndahere informs us she has put photographs of the first concert up only because of pressure placed on her by the Russell Crowe fandom. I would love to know where this pressure came from as it seemed she was having a great time with all the Russell Crowe fans who went to Australia from around the world on Twitter and Facebook. She totally ignores me and is not interested in anything I have to say. I am wondering if there was nothing said by the musicians and artists and it were business as usual, then why were there bootlegged videos and photos taken from her kneecam as her tweets and blog posts indicated. The rumour about photographs and bootlegging to me seems to be started by some Russell Crowe fans more, to take the pressure off themselves for producing the goods, rather than any concern about the wellbeing and wishes of the musicians and artists. From the photographs @lyndahere did take she didn’t seem to be in a good position although close enough to Alan Doyle right at his feet as usual. She would have had a stiff neck at the end. Again there are many reasons why @lyndahere did not take photographs and bootlegged videos these concerts, including not doing the work, being told not to take photographs and bootleg as bootlegging is also illegal as it is in other countries.

“I am not a Russell Crowe fan. But then, I’m not an Alan Doyle fan, either, though I expect only a few – the few that matter the most to me- will comprehend the Truth of that statement”. LyndaHere


And the cryptic double meaning world of @lyndahere goes on. But if you’re not a fan then why hog the prime ‘Alan Doyle can see me position at every concert’?. Why not give it to some other fan? @lyndahere clearly states in the blog she is not a fan of either Russell Crowe or Alan Doyle and only the people closest to her knew exactly what their relationship is. She could have fooled me. As I have said before in previous blog posts @lyndahere is not the first fan to imply there was a relationship with those musicians and artists they admire and love where there was none. Although I could have told people she wasn’t really a fan, more like a fan scorned. Being a fan isn’t a dirty word as she implies. Fans and fandom are words that have many meanings, with many layers and are constantly changing. They are continually being constructed and reconstructed by the people who participate in them. And that is what makes this all fascinating to me.

Fandom, An Unexpected Journey 600 Blog Posts... Thank You !

It seems like just yesterday I was celebrating writing and sharing my 500 th blog post. Today I am celebrating writing and sharing 600 blog ...