A thunderstorm that blew through Baltimore Friday evening and night forced the cancellation of musical acts at ArtScape, including Grammy winner Chaka Khan.

Several lightning strikes happened around 8 p.m. and, while people were eagerly waiting for news, the stage crew started packing up gear. No official announcement was made at the festival.

The festival announced on social media around 9 p.m. that Chaka Khan’s performance, as well as that of Maeta, was called off and, due to scheduling constraints, wouldn’t be rescheduled.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said he spoke with Chaka Khan after the cancellation.

“I spoke with Ms. @ChakaKhan a few moments ago. She was adamant that she wants to come back to Baltimore to perform in the near future! We will work to make it happen,” Scott posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Mark Davis had been standing in the front near the stage for a bit. When he realized the show wasn’t happening, he said, “This was gonna be the best position I ever had.”

“I waited 67 years to see her,” said Janice Fraction, who is 67. Her favorite song is “Sweet Lady.”

Charnae Wood said she just found out Friday that Chaka Khan was playing.

“I was at the gym, and I jumped off that treadmill to get here,” Wood said.

The cancellation came just an hour after the Baltimore Office of Emergency Management sent out a thunderstorm warning for the area and said all musical acts were put on hold for Friday night.

Artscape is a free three-day celebration of Baltimore’s art scene with performers, shows and a variety of entertainment. It is being held in the Mount Vernon, Bolton Hill, Charles North and Station North Arts districts.

The festival is scheduled to resume Saturday.