A really messy music festival

This weekend, I went to a music festival where there was a competition with around 12 participants, including my boyfriend. The event spanned two days. On the first day, all the participants performed their songs, and out of all of them, only three advanced to the finals on the second day. My boyfriend was one of the finalists, and I was really happy for him. However, since I was backstage, quietly observing, I overheard a lot of things, including how the mayor wanted a particular girl to win, even though she wasn’t very good.

Before announcing the results to the public, the organizers changed the original three finalists. They removed one of the guys who had originally made it and replaced him with the girl the mayor favored. When they announced the finalists to the public and the participants (who had no idea about the behind-the-scenes manipulation), I already knew what had happened. I had overheard the mayor offering money and public positions to the judges in exchange for their votes. Two out of the three judges accepted the offer.

I told my boyfriend beforehand, “Hey, look, you, another girl, and this guy were supposed to be the finalists. They were about to announce it, but the mayor just changed the results. You and the other girl are still in, but now you’ll be competing against this other girl who’s not very good.” I used their names, but I won’t mention them here. He didn’t believe me until the results were announced exactly as I had described. He was stunned.

The next day, as we were getting ready for the finals, the mayor casually walked by, greeting everyone. He pretended to head to the bathroom, but I knew exactly where he was going. He had to convince the third judge, the one he hadn’t been able to sway the day before. Sure enough, they went into a room, closed the door, and when they came out, it was clear from their expressions that they had reached an agreement. I didn’t tell my boyfriend because he was really excited and wanted to win. I didn’t want to crush his spirit, so I just supported him and let him follow his dream.

When the time came, my boyfriend went on stage, sang his song, and did an amazing job. Then the other talented girl performed, followed by the girl the mayor had pushed into the finals. It was obvious who deserved to win, but the results were already decided. When they announced the winners, my boyfriend came in third, the other talented girl came in second, and when they announced that the mayor’s favorite had won first place, the crowd erupted in boos. The audience was furious. People started yelling, “Corruption! Corruption!” and “They were robbed!” The festival ended the live broadcast, and the mayor and the girl quickly fled to the backstage. They had essentially stolen the prize money of 500,000 Chilean pesos.

Backstage, my boyfriend and the other girl were heartbroken. They knew they had been robbed. The audience tried to storm backstage, accusing the mayor of corruption, and they were right. I had heard the whole plot earlier, so I knew exactly what had happened. The mayor escaped, and the crowd chased after him. Later, the girl who won received flowers sent by the mayor. The three judges stayed behind, trying to convince my boyfriend and the other girl that the winner was actually talented and that they were boring and didn’t deserve to be finalists. I was so angry that I literally wanted to slap them. I thought, “You sold yourselves, so just take your dirty money and leave. You don’t need to insult these talented people on top of it.” But I stayed quiet because I didn’t want to make things worse for my boyfriend.

I told my boyfriend and the other girl not to listen to the judges and that they were amazing and deserved better. I also encouraged them to file a formal complaint because there’s evidence of what happened. They’re planning to do that now and are waiting for the other participant who was initially robbed to join the complaint.

I’m still really angry that corruption ruined what could have been a great festival. That prize money could have helped my boyfriend with his studies, but now he’ll have to look for other ways to get the funds. It’s heartbreaking how greed, power, and corruption can destroy something so meaningful.

That’s the end of my story. Have you ever seen something like this happen in your community? Let me know!! Bye bye, and have a great day!!