[UPDATE] New Venue Picks Up Axed Beenie Man Sydney Gig; Ticket Provider Responds To Promoter's Claims

update 5.35pm: 

The former ticket provider for Beenie Man's current Australian tour, Oztix, has hit back at claims by the promoter that there are "ulterior motives" at play, after the Sydney venue was changed following allegations of "fraudulent ticket sales".

Speaking to Music Feeds today, promoter Odia Ukoko said, "We told the ticketing agent [Oztix], ‘We would like to have hard copy tickets, because we have certain demographics in our fanbase who prefer to have physical tickets. Is that okay with you?’ 'Sure'.

"You can’t turn around and say these are fraudulent tickets. This is slander."

Oztix director Stuart Field has responded to Ukoko's comments in a statement given exclusively to The Music today.

Just a day after Sydney's Max Watt's venue axed Beenie Man's gig due to "alleged fraudlent ticket sales", promoters have announced that the show has been moved to The Factory Theatre in Marrickville.

While promoters announced the move on Wednesday night, The Factory Theatre management confirmed to The Music today that the Beenie Man show will be going ahead.

In a statement posted to Facebook yesterday, promoters dismissed Max Watt's allegations of ticket fraud.

"We are deeply disappointed with the decision by Max Watt's Sydney and their unfounded allegations, especially at this late stage and without advance warning," the statement reads.

"As with any business, we are very concerned about credit card fraud and expect that all such incidents should be referred to the NSW Police."

The 'King Of Dancehall' also confirmed the change of venue in a video statement, saying that the move has occurred due to "circumstances beyond my control".

Up until Max Watt's called off tonight's event, the promoters were advertising "flash" tickets to the show on Facebook, where they asked fans to email or SMS their details to a designated address and mobile number.

Beenie Man is no stranger to controversy on international trips, after he was pulled from the 2015 Raggamuffin festival in New Zealand due to the homophobic content in his lyrics, such as "I'm dreaming of a new Jamaica, come to execute all the gays".

Raggamuffin organisers released a statement following the decision which was sparked by outcry from the gay community in New Zealand.

"We took the concerns of the gay community very seriously and sought to address them with Beenie Man," spokesperson Brotha D (Danny Leaoasavaii) said.

"Raggamuffin is a family festival and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, gender or sexuality. After being made fully aware of his past comments and lyrics, and continued homophobic attitude the Raggamuffin team made the decision to remove him from the festival line-up."

In 2009, Beenie Man was also axed from Auckland's Big Day Out line-up over similar concerns.

The Jamaican artist is scheduled to perform at Trak in Melbourne on Saturday and Metro City in Perth on Sunday.

Management of both venues confirmed to The Music today that the shows will go ahead as planned.