Nicki Minaj’s show in Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena has been postponed after she was arrested in Amsterdam.
The 41-year-old American singer, known for the songs Starships, Super Bass and Anaconda, had been set to perform on Saturday evening as part of her Pink Friday World Tour.
Minaj’s show was originally set to have doors open at 6.30pm but this was changed to 7pm, and fans have since entered the venue.
A statement from the Dutch police said a woman was arrested after allegedly trying to take soft drugs from Schiphol Airport to another country.
An update from the force at around 9pm stated that it had released their “suspect and she can now move on”.
The force added that the woman will have to pay “a fine” which will be determined by the Public Prosecution Service.
Minaj has livestreamed being arrested as well as claiming that police found drugs in her luggage after her items were checked by customs.
She wrote that “they found weed” and her security “already advised them” that items belong to them, and not her.
Detailing her experience in a series of posts on social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, she wrote: “They’re trying to keep me from MANCHESTER.”
However, the gig will be moved to a later date with a statement from Live Nation saying: “Despite Nicki’s best efforts to explore every possible avenue to make tonight’s show happen, the events of today have made it impossible.
“We are deeply disappointed by the inconvenience this has caused.”
Devastated fans who had waited hours inside the arena have told reporters that they are unsure if they would be able to make the rescheduled performance.
Frankie Harper, 20, from Andover, Hampshire, said: “(I’m) distraught to say the least. It definitely hurts more that it was on my birthday. Not sure what happens with the £100s that you spend on a train and hotel.”
Nord Herida, 23, who lives in Barnsley and travelled an hour to attend the concert, said he had felt before the postponement that his time was “being wasted” inside the arena.
He added that his friend had travelled four hours from Ipswich to get to the gig and that they had been waiting since 1pm at the arena.
Major Robert van Kapel, from the Royal Netherlands military police, told Sky News at around 9.15pm that the woman had been released around 20 minutes ago from the Royal Marshal’s Office at Schiphol Airport.
“I don’t know which plane she will take, which destination, of course, privacy. It’s not our concern,” he also said.
“But I can say that 20 minutes ago she’s left. So probably she’s on her way to her next destination.”
When asked if they knew the woman was a rap artist, he responded: “Of course, we never confirm the identity of people we have in custody, suspects.
“But we have seen, of course, social media, and the only thing we have to do is do a thorough investigation. And that’s what we did and there’s no reason to (have her) any longer in custody. She can go wherever she has to go.”
Co-op Live has been plagued by issues before opening earlier this month, with Peter Kay and The Black Keys both having to reschedule dates because of the venue not being “ready”.
The venue postponed its first official show several times after safety concerns with the performer, US rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, moving his gig to rival AO Arena over the delays.
However, the UK’s biggest arena had live music on 14 May, when British rock band Elbow took to the stage.
