How exactly does the policy work for the donors?

I was a $1200 donor myself for the 5/31 DTE show. It was going to an awesome cause and once in a lifetime chance to experience something like this up close and personal, so it was a pretty easy choice to make. (I was with "Jugs", btw)

However, the security seemed a bit miffed with everyone. Even though the page said, "Feel free to come back after NIN's set," they pretty much booted us out

I mean, I'm not complaining by any means: got awesome pics, met cool people, autographs, all that, AND got a chance to chat with Justin at our table during the dinner! ..but just a bit confused with the policy, is all.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 06/04/2009 12:03PM by weapon.

disconn3ct posted:

slaw09 posted:

disconn3ct posted:

I don't disagree the donators should get priority. Let me say it again, for those of you in the back: I AGREE that the donators should get priority, or something extra. I don't agree that screwing over the existing winners is the way to do it.
I didn't expect to meet the bands (specifically Trent), but sure, there was a chance/hope. But I also didn't expect him to say "oh, btw, since you already had tickets and didn't donate $1000, you can fuck off."
Sure, if you're healthy its a no-brainer: bad seats totally beat the hell out of no seats.
Not that I expect anyone to read this far, since I'm in the "trent is a god and its about time those stupid winners got taken down a notch" thread :/

Totally agree.

Since you had so much trouble with your reading I pulled the important bits out just for you. Please try again.

(And as a general amendment, I had originally figured that if the crowd was not a good place for me there might be somewhere calmer to be, maybe someplace behind or next to the performance, with some sort of restricted access...)

Perhaps a plush couch? Or a La-Z-boy recliner? Obviously in a soundproof green room with HD Monitors broadcasting for you. We wouldn't want those sensitive ears getting hurt. And of course a 5 course meal of your choosing (cooked by the band obviously). Who can watch a concert on an empty stomach? And of course they have to drive you home since you got the bad leg. Probably should swing the tour bus on by and pick you up come to think of it. Hell, probably should play a private concert for you. Least they can do for you, well besides the free tickets.

Trent, I'm a Twitter winner for the Camden show. I'm not at all upset, the donation people definintely get priority. I hope other winners won't be as upset. You should do charity options more often!

slaw09 posted:

Perhaps a plush couch? Or a La-Z-boy recliner? ..etc...

Actually, standing in a corner, unable to see anything, if thats what it meant.

Damn dude, I knew highschool kids were getting dumber but seriously, you're pretty bad. Its great to see you figured out how to post after only a year of membership though, keep up the good work and one day you might learn to read.

(And if anyone with a brain thinks I was asking/expecting for something extra, unusual or unreasonable, you have entirely misunderstood my posts and I'll be happy to clarify. Well.. I expected slaw to read, that is certainly unreasonable, but otherwise..)

disconn3ct posted:

I don't disagree the donators should get priority. Let me say it again, for those of you in the back: I AGREE that the donators should get priority, or something extra. I don't agree that screwing over the existing winners is the way to do it. (You already knew how many winners were at each show. Including that small number of 'used' slots in the reservation system should have been a no-brainer.)

The tour ticket giveaways were not done on the fly, the donations were. These things happen, difficulties are anticipated and of course there are going to be problems. What he's doing is changing the terms of the free tickets. You didn't pay for them, there is no explicit agreement that anything will happen. Hell, he doesn't even have to honor them. He is continuing to do so however. If I was put in his position you would hate me far more, oh far far more. There is an honest attempt to be fair to the fans.

disconn3ct posted:

Personally, I didn't fly across the country. Instead, I reorganized everything (including yet another follow-up surgery) to be able to go locally on the 9th. I didn't expect to meet the bands (specifically Trent), but sure, there was a chance/hope. But I also didn't expect him to say "oh, btw, since you already had tickets and didn't donate $1000, you can fuck off."

Your medical problems are not his problem. Sorry, that's just how it works. I'm sure the venue will do the best to accommodate you, that's all you can ask.

disconn3ct posted:

So now the question is, is it worth going anyway?

This is an entirely subjective view and it's your decision. Why ask us?

disconn3ct posted:

Trent knows he's doing something wrong - for whatever reasons - and is skating past it.

He's doing what he thinks is right. At the end of the day, you show up for two hours and go home. He however does this for a living. It's his music, his tour, and this is his website. He earned it. I can be a fucking prick about certain things. A friend and I discussed the scream comment and thought it was kind of horseshit.


However, he spent 20 years of his life getting NIN to the point where he is happy with the results. The rest of us are just along for the ride.

He isn't Jesus, certainly not Gandhi. This is not someone you should spend restless nights contemplating your eternal meeting with. If anything he strikes me as a blue collar artist. Busting ass for a living in any career can be a thankless thing, that only you may derive satisfaction from. It's another thing entirely to have someone thank you for it. I don't mean the mindless ZOMG TRENT YOU ARE A GOD kind of hero worship. I'm talking about the genuine thank you for creating music, web interaction, and shows that are well done.

And as far as Eric, nobody was here for the past few years of hell that he went through along with his family raising awareness. We found out about all of this a couple weeks ago. If you can give someone hand, would you?

I don't have cash but I sure as shit spent days pushing this out there, framing it as Trent pitching in, just so the story could be heard. Emailing and calling everyone I could, including both of my Senators, and House rep from this state. If you want to argue the logistics of one leg of a tour in a 20 year career, while trying to save a life, also while juggling his normal responsibilities, you are going to get zero respect or give from me.

Again, I ask, did the Twitter winners, such as @heyericgrant know before turning up to the concert that he would not be meeting the band, or would this post be the first time he's hearing Trent's reasoning?

TheEditor posted:

In TR's post, he said to blame a member on here and a twitter user, @heyericgrant. Anyone check out the twitter guy's page? LOL! He donated $300 to meet TR and the band at the New Jersey show. I bet TR can't WAIT to meet this fucker! Aaaawkward! Haha.

Precious! LOL

disconn3ct posted:

slaw09 posted:

Perhaps a plush couch? Or a La-Z-boy recliner? ..etc...

Actually, standing in a corner, unable to see anything, if thats what it meant.

Damn dude, I knew highschool kids were getting dumber but seriously, you're pretty bad. Its great to see you figured out how to post after only a year of membership though, keep up the good work and one day you might learn to read.

(And if anyone with a brain thinks I was asking/expecting for something extra, unusual or unreasonable, you have entirely misunderstood my posts and I'll be happy to clarify. Well.. I expected slaw to read, that is certainly unreasonable, but otherwise..)

You see the problem my tiny brain has, is that I keep trying to figure out what you are complaining about. I read your sob story and come back to the same conclusion which is absolutely nothing. Not everything works out how you want it. I am sorry. It's life and it's not easy or fair. Get used to it.

And as small as my brain may be, even I am smart enough to know high school is two words.

s_tx posted:

OMS posted:

s_tx posted:

How much does Eric need exactly?

No offense intended, I'm just curious.

(I don't see why anyone would find that offensive, personally, but people can sometimes be particularly sensitive.)

For a routine heart transplant it is approx. 700K FOR THE FIRST YEAR. Then about 20K-30K PER YEAR after that.

But Eric isn't even a routine transplant...he recently had surgery for a VAD. He should have had a transplant 2 years ago. There is no real way to estimate how much his medical bills/etc will be after this is all said and done.

Thanks

That is horrible, I had no idea it cost that much.

I wish Eric and his family all the best.

And everyday he spends in the hospital just keeps upping the tab.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/04/2009 12:28PM by OMS.

holy shit. i can't believe anyone would bitch about getting a fucking FREE ticket. they should be lucky to get a kick in the nuts at the door if they complain -- at all. I donated and met Trent at the Toronto show. The set up was different than what was explained, but I doubt anyone complained about not getting a personal picture with the band, or not being able to give Trent a fucking personalized rim job... It was a chance to say hey, meet a musical genius, get a much sought after autograph and MOST IMPORTANTLY help someone in need. If you complain you should have your ticket and pass revoked. full stop.

While we're on the topic: To the complainers -- Name another band that has given you this much access. Name someone else in the music industry that has worked hard to get this far. You can't, and there's no law stated anywhere that says they have to, or have had to give you ANY access to their lives, or place of work for that matter. If you want to be a Trent Reznor, then take that negative energy and channel it into productivity. It's hard work and you're probably not cut out for it so say THANK YOU and shut the fuck up.

cozbysweater posted:

I won tickets and passes off Twitter and didn't expect anything. I used some common sense and figured the people who donated would get priority. I thought, "Hey if I get to meet the band, great, if not, great." It would still be a neat experience either way.

However, the planets must have been in alignment that day because I got to meet pretty much everyone. I got LUCKY bottom line. No one had to go out of their way to talk to us or take pictures. But they did. And I'm grateful.

Everyone who is bitching needs to STFU. You got something for FREE for chrissake.

EXACTLY. It was by serendipity that I met anyone with my passes, and I went into the experience prepared to not meet anyone at all. It's a free fucking nine inch nails concert. You can't complain about that! ....Or at least, I thought you couldn't.

The stupidity and selfishness of some members of the fanbase continues to astound me. As I said on twitter last night:

THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T HAVE NICE THINGS.

@heyericgrant, fuck yourself.

s_tx posted:

Again, I ask, did the Twitter winners, such as @heyericgrant know before turning up to the concert that he would not be meeting the band, or would this post be the first time he's hearing Trent's reasoning?

In my case, I assumed I would get backstage, considering that's what was said when I won the passes (no, it did not say I would meet the band or anything, I know...I realize, people, so don't jump to conclusions or anything). I had won tickets/passes the second time Trent gave them away.. so yeah, almost a month ago now. That was a few weeks before the donations for Eric thing came out, and a lot of Twitter winners seemed to be meeting the band so I figured I might just run into them if I was wandering around backstage. Then the donations for Eric thing came out and the whole novelty of having backstage passes and possibly a chance to meet the band went down the drain for me. I just wanted to see NIN kick ass for 90 minutes.

For me personally, the thing that really ticks me off is that no one knew what my passes were good for. They obviously said after show, but no one had a clue where I was supposed to go to get backstage. After NIN's set I went to go find out, and everyone I asked told me something different so I went back to my seats and enjoyed Jane's About 15 minutes after Jane's, I went to a blocked off area where a bunch of security guys were standing around guarding. I showed the my passes, they let me by. But here's the catch, they let us into a little concession area that was open to the public all night long. They way I saw it, it's almost like they just let us in there for the sake of letting us in somewhere. I'm not really sure how to explain this, but the second I got in this little area, I knew I wasn't actually going to get backstage. You could just tell something wasn't right. There was this little lounge nearby with an aftershow-like thing going on, but we couldn't even get in there to just chill. I asked 4 or 5 security people and employees (including the guy who let us back to this area), and no one knew a single thing about actually getting backstage.

With all that being said, maybe there was someone who was going to come and get us or something, but it was a quarter after 12am and I was getting tired so I left. No big deal, I saw NIN for free for fucks sake.. I was still on a huge adrenaline high, despite the fact NIN had been done for 2 hours.

In the end, the only thing that pisses me off is no one knowing what our backstage passes were for (well, where to go, when, etc..). If someone had told me they were just for memorabilia sake, I would have said 'cool' and carried on. After all, it would have been nice to be able to keep them on the sticker paper untouched and unpeeled. In no way did I think I would be able to meet the band, especially after the entire show. At that point I didn't want to bother anyone anyway.

So, yeah. Hopefully those of you who are bitching at us Twitter winners for complaining understand why I was a little let down. It in no way had to do with not meeting anyone or even getting backstage... it was all about the staff/security/etc. not knowing what we were to do that rubbed me the wrong way.

Thanks.

jarrettwold posted:

disconn3ct posted:

I don't disagree the donators should get priority. Let me say it again, for those of you in the back: I AGREE that the donators should get priority, or something extra. I don't agree that screwing over the existing winners is the way to do it.

What he's doing is changing the terms of the free tickets. You didn't pay for them, there is no explicit agreement that anything will happen. Hell, he doesn't even have to honor them. He is continuing to do so however. If I was put in his position you would hate me far more, oh far far more. There is an honest attempt to be fair to the fans.

I disagree, actually. As was pointed out, he turned a prize of a very interesting experience into a gift of a $20 souvenir. Yes, its a gift. No, that doesn't make it right. Congratulations, you win this Caribbean vacation! Ooh, but wait, sorry, we didn't actually expect you to win. Since I said 'this' vacation, you get the poster I pointed at and a free ride to/from the airport. Enjoy! Oh, and if you are upset you're just an asshole who wants to starve innocent children. (As far as the "doesn't have to honor" part, it appears that he feels he does. Otherwise why give the useless passes at all? IANAL but that reeks of CYA..)

jarrettwold posted:

Your medical problems are not his problem. Sorry, that's just how it works. I'm sure the venue will do the best to accommodate you, that's all you can ask.

Absolutely. And that is all I was asking. (In fact, thats why I didn't buy tickets when they first went on sale. And I mailed the 'congrats' address back when it was clear I'd still be jacked up, expecting to get told "sorry, we can't help" - in fact, I got a quick note telling me what to do so the venue would take care of it.)

I think you meant to quote a little more - you quoted the part where I say, in so many words that I had no expectation of being within 100 feet of anyone interesting at all. (Which was even more true when the donations were announced and listed with a band hang-out session.) The "hmm seating isn't looking promising" part was later in my message.

jarrettwold posted:

A friend and I discussed the scream comment and thought it was kind of horseshit.

"scream comment"? (Maybe the search link failed me, but the only place it found 'scream' in this thread was right there.)

jarrettwold posted:

He isn't Jesus, certainly not Gandhi. This is not someone you should spend restless nights contemplating your eternal meeting with. If anything he strikes me as a blue collar artist.

Or maybe you didn't quote that part intentionally, where I said in so many words that I didn't expect (in either sense of the word) to meet anyone interesting. (And I think you'd agree that Trent counts as "someone interesting" in this case.)

What if he said "ooh, well, since we got all those donations we're not giving you tickets, just the fake passes. Sometime in the next 3-6 months you'll get your pass. Sorry but if you complain its cuz you are a douchebag." Personally, for reasons I explained earlier, I was much more interested in the pass than the tickets. The concert is awesome, and I am still deciding whether it makes sense for me to go or not, but that is not the part that had me so excited when I won or so disappointed now.

(Hey, not to blaspheme, but has anyone asked the bands if they are matching donations or anything? I haven't seen anything about it.)

Kekumba posted:

So, yeah. Hopefully those of you who are bitching at us Twitter winners for complaining understand why I was a little let down. It in no way had to do with not meeting anyone or even getting backstage... it was all about the staff/security/etc. not knowing what we were to do that rubbed me the wrong way.

Thanks.

It's not always his/the band/the band crew's fault but the fault of the venue staff, who do not know how to read or identify simple pass pictures on a sheet of paper. Passes are always hit or miss depending on the venue and/or first security person you ask. That's why you go around and get a second opinion. There have been times where I've seen family members stuck at security trying to get to a certain place and security kept them away, even though they had an uber all access pass. But they let a second or third tier sticky pass walk on through. I saw this happen at the Irvine show to a brother of one of the performers. I think the majority of the criticism should be directed to the venue staff. Some venues have amazing, knowledgeable security who are helpful, kind and courteous. While others have staff that are out of the loop, arrogant and mean, putting up their defense mechanisms because they have no clue what's going on. Sounds like you got stuck in a shitty venue. It happens and it sucks

j_t_revelator posted:

s_tx posted:

Again, I ask, did the Twitter winners, such as @heyericgrant know before turning up to the concert that he would not be meeting the band, or would this post be the first time he's hearing Trent's reasoning?

I'm sure the community will correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think a "backstage pass" for ANY band guarantees meeting anybody. Backstage can mean a lot of things and there are usually different levels of access involved. I would hope that seeing a free show with even a remote POTENTIAL of something more would be enough for some people.

Ah okay, I worded that wrong. I was just wondering if he knew that his pass would no longer let him get backstage. I can see why it would disappoint him if he had no idea on the actual night.

I do believe that Trent has every right to give donors priority, and think that no twitter winners from this point on should have any reason to complain (publicly, at least).

Are they being personally informed via email or anything? It would probably be a good idea so they aren't as confused as kekumba was and end up wondering around aimlessly =P.