A past performance at Virginia Credit Union Live at Richmond Raceway (Photo by Nicole Cohen)
Safety worries drove three musical acts to cancel shows at Virginia Credit Union Live at Richmond Raceway in mid-September. Representatives of the outdoor music venue located at the Henrico County racetrack, however, say an inspection found no safety concerns or damage to the venue’s grid stage support structure.
The problems began as Megadeth prepared to perform on Sept. 15. The thrash metal band said in a statement that its rigger “was in the venue’s steel grid system above the stage, getting ready to hang the lights, when he noticed there was damage to the venue’s grid. He pointed this out immediately to the promoters and the venue.
“It was determined that it was unsafe for Megadeth to hang their production or put the band on stage at the risk of in-house grid failure to support the weight of the touring lighting and sound, which could fall on the band, crew members or audience [and] cause serious injury or death,” the statement continues. “Therefore, Megadeth, the local promoter, the venue and booking agents had no other option than to cancel the show.”
The news drove the venue’s next two performers to change their plans. Guitarist Peter Frampton canceled his Sept. 17 show, while the rock band Nothing More relocated on Sept. 20 to The National, which shares its owner, The Bowery Presents, with Virginia Credit Union Live.
A statement from Virginia Credit Union Live says an inspection uncovered “no safety concerns or damage found to the venue’s grid,” adding that organizers “are grateful to Megadeth for reporting a suspected issue out of an abundance of caution.” Frampton’s concert, meanwhile, “was canceled due to the [insufficient] time to properly inspect the grid and expected inclement weather.”
The cancellations represent another wave of bad news at Richmond Raceway, which is losing one of its two NASCAR races in 2025 as the sport expands internationally. Drivers will compete in Mexico City on June 15 and will only travel once to Richmond on Aug. 16.
At Virginia Credit Union Live, two shows remain on the schedule for this year: Christian worship singer-songwriter Brandon Lake on Oct. 18 and pop-rock artist Benson Boone on Oct. 19. Attempts to reach the musicians about their plans were not successful by press time. Virginia Credit Union Live’s statement ends on an optimistic note, saying, “We look forward to welcoming fans back as we complete our concert season next month with two stellar concerts.”
Meanwhile, a war of words is playing out between two of the performers. While on stage Sept. 19 in Philadelphia, Frampton blamed the forecast for the cancellation, but he also claimed Megadeth had damaged the stage.
“So, we had a show canceled the other day because of weather,” Frampton said in a fan-captured video. “And also Megadeth did a sound check, I think a couple of days before our show, and after they finished their sound check, there was structural damage to the stage. I’m not blaming them — could have been another band — but it looks pretty like it. So, sorry, Megadeth. I had to rat on you.”
Megadeth soon fired back at Frampton, saying the band “did not even get a chance to sound check at all.”
“It seems Frampton was misinformed about our show being canceled,” frontman Dave Mustaine said in the statement. “The decision was purely based on safety. It’s disappointing when someone you admire talks out their a-- about you.”
This is a developing story and will be updated with additional information.
