The Weeknd postpones all New Zealand shows due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’

The Weeknd has cancelled all his upcoming New Zealand shows.

The Weeknd has announced the New Zealand leg of his After Hours Til Dawn Global Stadium world tour will be rescheduled.

The pop star, real name Abel Tesfaye, was set to perform on December 8 and 9 at Auckland’s Eden Park this year — but it’s now been revealed that those shows will no longer go ahead on those dates.

According to a statement from Live Nation, the shows have been postponed. “Due to unforeseen circumstances, we must reschedule the Australia/New Zealand tour. New dates will be announced next year and current tickets will be valid for the new shows. Refunds will be available for those unable to attend the new dates. Deeply disappointed but can’t wait to be there with you!”

New dates have not been revealed, nor how long Kiwis will have to wait to find out. “We understand fans will be disappointed, and Live Nation is focused on working with The Weeknd to secure a new tour schedule. We will make a further announcement as soon as possible.”

Live Nation has reassured ticketholders who can’t attend the new dates (once announced) that they will be entitled to a refund, and ticketing agents would be in contact.

It’s not the first change to The Weeknd’s much-anticipated tour.

In early September, promoter Live Nation announced a major change to the New Zealand shows, rescheduling the original December 7 date to Saturday December 9.

At the time, the promoter announced in an email to ticket-holders that due to the success of shows in Australia and the announcement of a fourth Melbourne show, they had to change the star’s New Zealand schedule.

The Weeknd performs in Chile. Photo / Cam Mansel

“Due to the phenomenal demand for tickets and accommodate as many fans as possible, The Weeknd will be adding a 4th show in Melbourne. The addition of this show has resulted in the need for the Dec 7th Auckland show to be rescheduled,” the email read.

The second Eden Park show was first added in August this year due to “phenomenal” demand for tickets.

A statement revealed a second show would take place on Friday, December 8, and would feature special performances from Mike Dean and Chxrry22.

“Demand for The Weeknd’s December 7 show in New Zealand was unprecedented and one of the busiest presales in Ticketmaster New Zealand’s history,” the statement read.

The Diamond-certified and award-winning artist first shot to fame in 2013 with the release of his album Kiss Land. Debuting at No 2 on the Billboard top 200, he further solidified himself in the music space by collaborating on film soundtracks, including Earned It from Fifty Shades of Grey.

After winning a Grammy for Best R&B Performance with the popular film’s single, he didn’t release another album until Beauty Behind the Madness in 2015. Reaching No 1 on the US charts, the star won over fans with his career-defining hits including Can’t Feel My Face and The Hills.

The album was a huge success commercially and critically as it went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Urban Contemporary Album, as well as a nomination for Album of the Year. But the singer-songwriter didn’t stop there. Going from strength to strength he quickly released the album Starboy in 2016, which enjoyed similar success to his prior album.

The Weeknd has since become one of the world’s bestselling musicians, with over 75 million records sold.