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After 10 News began calling club promoters in Chicago about a conflicting New Year's Eve appearance from the rapper known as "Weezy," Club Empire in Ybor City pulled the plug on the event - just two days before New Year's Eve - because owner Ken Grossman "couldn't get 100 percent commitment" from the rapper's management.
Until Wednesday morning, people who visited the Empire Night Club's website were welcomed with a personalized audio message from Lil Wayne that said, "I will be shutting down Tampa, Florida this New Year's Eve at Club Empire - be there!" A similar personalized audio message appears on
Lil Wayne had also begun touting the Ybor event to Tampa-area media, including telling reporter Jay Cridlin that "I will be in Tampa, bringing in the new year at Empire nightclub. We're just gonna show up, do our thing, hang out for a minute."
Now, Empire is advertising a New Year's Eve party with no cover until 11 p.m. - a far cry from the packages they were offering for the high-profile party.
"I didn't want to charge a lot of money and have a club full of people upset," said Empire owner Ken Grossman. He said the idea for the appearance started when the rapper's management reached out to him, but refused to delve into details of the cancellation.
Many in Tampa Bay are still bitter about a no-show last month from basketball star LeBron James, who had promised to appear at a party at The Venue in St. Petersburg despite a game that evening in Atlanta. When James didn't show up, hundreds of fans went home angry.
Attempts to reach Lil Wayne's management were unsuccessful.
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