From Elton John to Ariana Grande and Lewis Capaldi - here are 7 stars who have cancelled shows. Photo / Getty Images
From Elton John to Ariana Grande and Lewis Capaldi - here are 7 stars who have cancelled shows. Photo / Getty Images
While it might sound like it’s all glitz, glam and tour bus parties, for many stars, life on the road can be incredibly tough.
For months, if not years, they are away from their homes, their families and they have very little routine. The fast pace can take quite a toll on their health, physically and emotionally.
We saw this in 2020 when, two years into his five-year Farewell Tour, Sir Elton John devastatingly had to pull the pin on his Auckland show mid-way through. We saw it again when Justin Bieber cancelled his Justice World Tour after struggling with his Ramsay Hunt syndrome diagnosis.
Now, Lewis Capaldi’s recent Glastonbury appearance has sparked speculation the star could cancel his upcoming New Zealand shows. If he does, he won’t be the first and certainly won’t be the last musician to cancel performances because of health issues.
From Madonna to Ariana Grande, here are seven musicians who have heartbreakingly cancelled shows:
Elton John performs at Mt Smart Stadium. Photo / Dave Simpson
It is perhaps the most memorable and emotional cancellation in Kiwi history. On February 16 at Auckland’s Mt Smart Arena, a distraught John was forced to call off his concert mid-show.
After suffering pneumonia and losing his voice, the then 73-year-old Yellow Brick Road singer - who was already two years into his 350-date Farewell tour - sobbed as he left the stage with assistance from his crew and told fans, “I’m sorry, so very sorry”.
On Instagram and Facebook an hour after the show was called off, the star wrote, “I want to thank everyone who attended tonight’s gig in Auckland. I was diagnosed with walking pneumonia earlier today, but I was determined to give you the best show humanly possible. I played and sang my heart out, until my voice could sing no more.
“I’m disappointed, deeply upset and sorry. I gave it all I had. Thank you so much for your extraordinary support and all the love you showed me during tonight’s performance. I am eternally grateful.” After the walkout, he cancelled two shows that were due to take place also in Auckland that week.
Because of Covid restrictions, the star was unable to visit again until this year and while it was a welcome return, it seems Auckland is a cursed destination for the singer. After performing in Christchurch, John was ready to entertain his Auckland fans but mere minutes before he was due to take the stage, the show was called off and evacuated as a result of severe weather.
Will we ever see the star on a Kiwi stage again? It seems unlikely, but not impossible.
Justin Bieber
It was sad news for Kiwi Beliebers after the singer cancelled his New Zealand and Australian tour dates. Photo / Chris Loufte
After a postponement announcement of his December 7 show and fierce speculation that a cancellation was in the works, Justin Bieber announced in March that he will not be returning to New Zealand shores anytime soon.
Frontier Touring told fans via Facebook that with “regret”, Bieber’s tour of Australia and New Zealand had been cancelled and offered refunds for the tickets.
The Baby singer revealed last year he had been diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome which partially paralysed his face and contributed to his mental health battles.
After a brief break and a seeming return to the stage, Bieber told fans: “I performed six live shows but it took a real toll on me. This past weekend I performed at Rock in Rio and I gave everything I have to the people in Brazil. After getting off stage the exhaustion overtook me and I realised that I needed to make my health a priority right now. So I’m going to take a break from touring for the time being.”
It is yet to be revealed whether the star will embark on another world tour.
Counting Crows
Counting Crows have cancelled multiple New Zealand shows due to illness. Photo / Supplied
After performing in Christchurch and Auckland as part of their Butter Miracle tour in March this year, Counting Crows announced mere hours before their Wellington show, that it was being cancelled due to illness.
“Counting Crows and Live Nation share the disappointment of ticket holders at this late news and apologise for any inconvenience caused,” the band said.
“Unfortunately it will not be possible to reschedule the Wellington performance during the current tour schedule, therefore full refunds will be issued to all ticket holders via their original payment method.”
No further information was released about the show-stopping “illness” but it was the second time the band had left Kiwi fans in the lurch after they cut short their 2013 tour moments before they were due to hit the stage.
Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande indefinitely cancelled her tour after the Manchester attack. Photo / AP
While the popstar has never cancelled a show in New Zealand, she was forced to suspend her 2017 world tour after a deadly terror attack during her show at Manchester Arena that killed 19 and injured up to 50 people.
The singer was not injured in the attack but TMZ reported that she was “in hysterics” and later reports revealed the former child star was suffering anxiety and depression after the attack.
This wouldn’t be the last time Grande would cancel shows. In the years following, the Thank u, Next singer cancelled multiple concerts due to illness including one in Las Vegas after being diagnosed with bronchitis.
Grande has dealt with many difficult situations in her career which have contributed to mental and physical health issues including the unexpected death of her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller and the breakdown of her engagement to Pete Davidson and the aftermath of the Manchester attack.
It said the then 31-year-old songstress “is suffering from severe pain that has materially impacted her ability to perform live” - the same reason given when she postponed the same dates six months previously, the Daily Mail reported.
Gaga also took to Twitter to address the cancellation telling fans: “I’m so devastated I don’t know how to describe it. All I know is that if I don’t do this I am not standing by the words or meaning of my music.
“My medical team is supporting the decision for me to recover at home. We’re cancelling the last 10 shows of my Joanne World Tour. I love the show more than anything and I love you but this is beyond my control.”
She had told fans she has the chronic condition fibromyalgia. The condition causes musculoskeletal pain throughout a person’s body as well as issues with the joints, sleep, fatigue and memory loss.
Madonna
Madonna Rebel Heart Tour at Vector Arena. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
After experiencing “overwhelming pain”, pop icon Madonna told fans that she was cancelling three tour dates in Boston according to doctor’s orders.
She wrote on Instagram: “Please forgive this unexpected turn of events. Doing my show every night brings me so much joy and to cancel is a kind of punishment for me but the pain I’m in right now is overwhelming and I must rest and follow doctors’ orders so I can come back stronger and better and continue the Madame X journey with all of you.”
In 2020 she made another cancellation during her Madame X tour telling Lisbon fans the show would not go ahead mere hours before she was due to take the stage leaving many disappointed fans filling the streets. While she never revealed what her illness was, by March of that same year, the rest of her tour was cancelled due to concerns over the impending coronavirus pandemic.
Lewis Capaldi
Lewis Capaldi performs on the Pyramid stage during day 4 of Glastonbury Festival 2023. Photo / Getty Images
The star is yet to confirm whether or not his New Zealand shows will be going ahead however speculation of a cancellation has started to rise as his health appears to have taken a sad turn over the weekend.
Having already cancelled multiple UK shows as part of his world tour while he prepared for Glastonbury, the star took to the stage over the weekend and experienced a heart-breaking Tourette’s battle that made it almost impossible for the Bruises singer to continue his set.
Profusely apologising to the crowd as he suffered through a great deal of tics and losing his voice, he told fans he is planning to take more time off to allow himself time to “rest and recover”.
He said, “I feel like I’ll be taking another wee break for the next few weeks. You might not see me even for the rest of the year, but when I do come back and I do see you, I hope you’re up for watching.”
