Jenni Rivera Memorial Service Sells Out Immediately

The Associated Press, Tuesday, December 18, 2012, 2:30pm (PST)

Billboard -- Tickets to singer Jenni Rivera's memorial service went on sale to the general public on Ticketmaster.com for $1 at noon PT on Tuesday, giving fans of the regional Mexican star an opportunity to attend the event at the Gibson Amphitheater in Los Angeles.

Tickets to the event -- which sold out in under an hour -- went on sale one day after the Rivera family announced that the services would take place from 10 a.m. to noon in a ceremony led by the singer's brother Pedro Rivera, Jr. Exactly when they were announced on-sale was unclear at press time, but they were listed on Ticketmaster.com at least an hour before they went on sale.

Until the sale of the tickets, representatives for the Rivera family had not announced how fans would be admitted into the Gibson, which can seat about 6,000 people.

A source close to the event indicated that tickets were sold online to prevent scalpers from reselling them. Fans who attend the ceremony will be required to show identification and the credit card they used to purchase tickets, according to Ticketmaster.com.

A sales person reached through Ticketmaster's toll-free number indicated that tickets were available online exclusively in collaboration with Live Nation. About 15 minutes after the sales began, many of the tickets were already taken and only available as individual seats, instead of the 2-ticket maximum option.

The sale of tickets to memorials of the famous is not common. However, in 2009, organizers of the Michael Jackson services at the Staples Center and Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles were distributed through an online lottery, which allowed thousands of fans to pay tribute to the King of Pop in person.

In April 2004, rising regional Mexican singer Adan Sanchez's memorial service in Norwalk, Calif., was held at a small church with organizers expecting a few hundred people. Instead, more than 10,000 fans showed up to mourn the 19-year-old singer, who was killed in Mexico during a promotional trip when his vehicle blew a tire, overturned and fatally injured him.

Shortly after the Rivera's tickets went on sale Tuesday afternoon, the singer's representatives also e-mailed media outlets to inform them that they would not be granted access to the services, but instead could connect to the coverage through a live broadcast of the feed.

The Rivera family also requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Jenni Rivera Love Foundation in addition to a single white rose. The nonprofit's core mission is to help sick children with their medical needs and to date, the organization has donated nearly $150,000 between 2008 and 2012, according to tax filings.

Rivera, 43, had also recently given a check for $35,000 to Children's Hospital Los Angeles via the Children's Miracle Network and spent several hours speaking with children and signing autographs, according to Lupe De La Cruz, a former music executive who once worked with Rivera.

Rivera, a major star in the regional Mexican genre, died along with six members of her entourage on Dec. 9 when their plane crashed after a concert in Monterrey, Mexico.

Since her death, fans around the world have paid homage to Rivera. Broadcast programs and media outlets have also covered Rivera's death extensively. Wednesday's event is expected to include well-known people in the entertainment industry in a service that will likely be carried live on some networks.

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