Hey Neighbour festival organisers under fire as refund delays frustrate fans

After a strong debut in 2023, this year’s Hey Neighbour festival has been overshadowed by challenges and public scrutiny.

Ticketholders have taken to social media to complain about non-communication and lack of refunds after the event was cancelled.

The festival was initially set to take place over three days in August with the likes of Doja Cat, Central Cee and Leon Thomas, before it was changed to a two-day festival in December.

RELATED: Hey Neighbour Festival officially cancelled: 'Difficult but necessary decision’

Festival organisers said refunds would be issued by 10 October, but complaints continue to pour in.

Speaking to 947, owner of Glen 21 Entertainment – the organisers of Hey Neighbour – Glen Netshipise acknowledged that communication should have been more forthcoming.

"Funding something of the magnitude of Hey Neighbour is a very tough task, especially when you are doing it in our country. It cost us a lot of money to do it the first year. In the second year, we obviously wanted to exceed those expectations, but we weren’t hitting our targets, and we could see where it was going, and it was not going to be sustainable in the long term," he said.

He added that the initial refund date was communicated in good faith, but they were met with challenges.

"People can be assured that we are working 24/7 to make sure that the refunds are done as quickly as possible."

Netshipise said they cannot commit to a timeline for refunds currently but were trying to work as quickly as possible.

"We have never been in this situation before, it is something new to us, and we are navigating things that we are not aware of. For a company like ours, which is 20 years in the game, to disappoint ticketholders the way that we have, it possibly weighs more than people can imagine. If you have spent your hard-earned money, I can only imagine the inconvenience we have caused."

He added: "There are people who have already been refunded… we are refunding as capacity allows. We want to get this behind us as quickly as possible, as it also affects what we do."

To listen to Glen Netshipise, owner of Glen 21 Entertainment, in conversation with 947’s Anele and The Club, click the audio player below: