Perfectly said.
I have to agree with this. Though I’ve never heard anything by Lady Antebellum nor Sugarland, I am aware of the bands.
If I can do a ‘side pit’, would this have been such ‘breaking news’ at a national level if there wasn’t video? I don’t want to downplay the deaths and injuries, but if 5 people died of heat exhaustion instead of a dramatically caught on video falling stage, would CNN have felt the need to keep pushing alerts to me?
Janet Jackson is a 90’s retread a decade past her last hit. Sugarland is a bigger act, and Lady Antebellum is a WAY bigger act.
I should also add that the Beatles played the State Fair there in the early '60s, so yeah, they’ve drawn some big names over the years.
Tragedy? Does this stage collapsing really rise to the level of huge national tragedy? It’s unfortunate but I don’t see this as big news.
^This +1.
A pure case of misplaced pitting.
I don’t see the moral outrage here, either. I personally think she should be paid that fee, providing that there’s nothing in the contract canceling payment in these sorts of circumstances. She upheld her end of the contract, she reserved that particular date for them, and due to unfortunate circumstances, the event didn’t happen. It’s not her fault and, like Simplico says, it’s not like she’s billing the families or anything. The State Fair should be aware of such possible circumstances and either take out insurance for it or have a clause in the contract that clarifies what happens.
Never been to Indiana, but here in Texas, the State Fair is HUGE. I could see them being less of a big deal in the coasts, but in traditionally agricultural states, the state fairs are an entrenched and much-beloved tradition.
I really hold no opinion on the subject of the pitting one way or t’other, though. Condolences to the families of the killed and injured.
Yeah, one of the biggest, if not the biggest regular season college football game of the year is held as a part of the Texas state fair, the OU/Texas game.
On one hand, I’d like to see her cancel the contract out of respect, good karma and better publicity … but on the other hand, the contract payments would most likely come from the Indiana Fair’s insurance company.
I’m a Libra … perhaps not cut out for Pit arguments. 
Janet Jackson has had a couple “hit” singles in the last decade. (if you’re using the strict definition of songs making the top 40 of the Billboard weekly Hot 100. more if your definitions of said are looser). The last one was 2008’s “Feedback”. She’s long, long past her prime, but not nearly a hasbeen yet.
The corn dog circuit is populated by acts on the way up and acts on the way down. Not necessarily newcomers or has-beens, but acts just entering their prime, and acts that are past their prime, but who can attract an audience.
It’s not that unusual for a state fair concert to have to be cancelled due to weather. In cases like that, does the performer still get paid? I assume so; they still had to go to the trouble and expense of showing up.
Just because they’ve never bared a nipple on national TV.
And where exactly do you think a state fair will get the money?
And, no, just because they already have it doesn’t mean they won’t have to raise prices to get that money back.
Their insurance policy?
Right–so my original “She’s down to playing state fairs? Jerk or not, she is probably desperate for cash.” wasn’t completely clueless; “was” was (is?) the operative word.
Again, no offense to the farm states or fair-goers or Lady Antigaga or whoever. Just that I was surprised that someone who used to sell out stadiums and blah blah blah was now playing state fairs.
Oh, and Deer Creek in Noblesville Indiana is one of the secret most bestest places to see a concert. I love that place–I’ve hitchiked (in the early 90s) from the east coast to catch shows there. Not that this has anything to do with state fairs or Jackson’s fall from icon-status…
International tv, even. 
Y’all’ll notice Justin Timberlake ain’t playin’ no State Fairs.
So if McNEIL-PPC, Inc., the makers of Tylenol had a take or pay contract with ACME to supply them with the ingredients to make Tylenol, and then hundreds of people started dying from Tylenol, and McNeil-PPC stopped production of Tylenol, and then cancelled orders from ACME, you think that it ACME shouldn’t be able to collect from McNeil under the take or pay contract, just because people died or because McNeil may have to raise the price of future bottles of Tylenol they make?
Have you not watched the video? The Indiana state fair concerts are held in a stadium.