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Kelowna  

Goodbye to Hedley?

Madison Erhardt

UPDATE: 8 a.m.

Hedley's frontman suggested Friday that the group's "indefinite hiatus" may not be permanent as the Vancouver pop-rockers closed out their tour's final show under a cloud of sexual misconduct allegations.

"This is goodnight, not goodbye," Jacob Hoggard told boisterous fans in Kelowna.

"So stay in our lives. And Kelowna, I will promise I will stay in yours."

The floor seats at Prospera Place were mostly filled, but the arena had large empty spaces in the stands.

Valerie Rivet, who travelled from Ottawa to see her favourite band for the 33rd time, said the accusations against Hoggard haven't been proven, and if they ever are, she would re-evaluate her love of the band.

"Twitter is not a court of law," she said. "For now I stand with them."

Toronto police have said they are investigating Hoggard, but no charges have been laid.

Online accusations began surfacing last month suggesting inappropriate encounters with young fans.

In announcing he would be putting his career on hold, Hoggard said he would make real changes in his life, seeking guidance from his family and learning from the "amazing women in my life."

"The way I've treated women was reckless and dismissive of their feelings. I understand the significant harm that is caused not only to the women I interacted with, but to all women who are degraded by this type of behaviour," he wrote in a statement posted to his Twitter account Feb. 28.

"I have been careless and indifferent and I have no excuse. For this I am truly sorry."

– The Canadian Press


ORIGINAL: 5 a.m.

Prospera Place was packed full of Hedley fans Friday night in what was possibly the band's last performance ever. 

The band tweeted it is going on a indefinite hiatus after sexual misconduct allegations against singer Jacob Hoggard surfaced in February.

Hoggard has denied ever engaging in non-consensual sexual behaviour, but says he has behaved in a way that objectifies women.

The group has been dropped by its management team, venues, and radio stations have stopped playing their music.  

A  Kelowna father drove down to Prospera Place an hour before the show, hoping to sell tickets his daughter had purchased. 

"My daughter bought them months and months ago, and now she refuses to go because of the allegations with the lead singer," Chris Jerstad said. 

"She just wants to get face value for them, and nobody will touch them. I come down here a lot and usually it's pretty easy to unload a concert ticket. Not tonight," Jerstad added. 

According to the box office, 3,100 tickets were sold for the concert at Prospera. The venue capacity is between 4,000 and 5,000.



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