Chappell Roan cancels Paris, Amsterdam concerts
Chappell Roan has cancelled her upcoming headline dates in France and the Netherlands at short notice, citing “scheduling conflicts”.
The American singer-songwriter was set to perform at Le Bataclan in Paris on 3 September and Melkweg Amsterdam on 4 September as part of the European leg of her Midwest Princess Tour.
Roan’s concert in Berlin, Germany, which was originally slated for Columbiahalle on 31 August, will now take place at the city’s Velodrom on 23 September. Additional tickets go on sale tomorrow (30 August).
“Due to scheduling conflicts, I have had to make the extremely hard decision to cancel my Paris and Amsterdam shows,” she writes on social media. “I have rescheduled my Berlin show to 23 September. I am so sorry and very disappointed. I promise I will be back. I’m heartbroken. Thank you for understanding.”
The 26-year-old’s UK & Ireland shows in September will still go ahead as planned
The 26-year-old’s UK and Ireland shows will still go ahead as planned. The run takes in Manchester Academy (13 September), O2 Academy Glasgow (15 September), Dublin’s Olympia Theatre (17 September) and three nights at O2 Academy Brixton (19-21 September).
She will also star at All Things Go, an independent US festival renowned for its female-dominated lineups, in Forest Hills, New York (28 September) and Columbia, Maryland (29 September). She will also appear at Austin City Limits festival in October.
Roan is represented on the live scene by Wasserman Music agents Jackie Nalpant, Kiely Mosiman, Adele Slater and Anna Bewers.
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QOTSA cancel all remaining 2024 tour dates
Queens of the Stone Age have cancelled the remainder of their 2024 tour due to frontman Josh Homme requiring “essential medical care”.
North American festival dates at Soundside Music Festival and Mempho Music Festival have been cancelled alongside the band’s slot at Mexico City’s Corona Capital.
Meanwhile, US headline shows at MGM Music Hall, Boston, Andrew J Brady Music Center in Cincinnati, Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island in Chicago and Breese Stevens Field in Madison have been postponed to next year.
“QOTSA regret to announce the cancellation and/or postponement of all remaining 2024 shows,” says a statement posted to the group’s social media accounts. “Josh has been given no choice but to prioritise his health and to receive essential medical care through the remainder of the year.
“Josh and the QOTSA family are so thankful for your support and the time we were able to spend together over the last year”
“Josh and the QOTSA family are so thankful for your support and the time we were able to spend together over the last year. Hope to see you all again in 2025.”
The rockers were forced to cancel a string of European festival headline dates last month due to 51-year-old Homme requiring “emergency surgery”.
The cancelled performances included Festival Jardin Sonare in France, Slovakia’s Pohoda Festival, Germany’s Zitadelle Spandau, Czechia’s Colours of Ostrav, METAstadt in Austria, Electric Castle Festival in Romania and Athens Rocks in Greece, as well as two headline shows at SRC Salata in Croatia.
They also pulled out of slots at Norway’s Øya, Sweden’s Way Out West, Denmark’s Syd for Solen, Caberet Vert in France, Lowlands in the Netherlands, Belgium’s Pukkelpop and Portugal’s Villar de Mouros.
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Lauryn Hill speaks out on Fugees tour cancellation
Lauryn Hill has blamed “sensationalism and clickbait headlines” for the decision to cancel her North American tour with the Fugees.
Billed as a 25th anniversary celebration of Hill’s debut solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, the 18-date “co-headline” run was set to feature the US singer and Fugees bandmates Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel.
But the tour, which had been rescheduled from last November, was pulled this week – just three days before tonight’s (9 August) scheduled opener at the MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre in Tampa, Florida.
Alleging that unfavourable media coverage had hurt ticket sales for the dates, Hill says the decision to cancel was made “with difficulty”.
“Last year, I faced an injury that necessitated the rescheduling of some of my shows,” she says on social media. “Regrettably, some media outlets’ penchant for sensationalism and clickbait headlines have seemingly created a narrative that has affected ticket sales for the North American portion of the tour.
“The trust and faith I have in my intentions and my commitment to my art seem to have been overshadowed by this unfortunate portrayal.”
“We’re looking forward to performing at the shows in the UK and Europe in October”
Hill & the Fugees’ October/November 2024 European tour is scheduled to go ahead as planned. Kicking off in Ireland at Dublin’s 3Arena, it is slated to include UK arena dates in Cardiff, Manchester, London, plus shows in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Sweden.
“The audiences in the UK and Europe not only haven’t seen the Miseducation anniversary performance yet, they also haven’t seen the Fugees perform together in over 25 years,” adds Hill. “Performing for my fans, is a profound exchange of energy and emotion that excites me every time. Every show is a piece of my expression and testament to our connection and shared love for music. I can assure you that no one is more disappointed about not being able to perform than I am.
“We’re looking forward to performing at the shows in the UK and Europe in October — and for our fans in North America, when these unforeseen circumstances are resolved, we’ll be back in full force.”
A number of other high-profile artists have also cancelled gigs at short notice in recent days, including Journey, who axed their UK & Ireland tour as a result of “circumstances beyond the band’s control”, Rod Stewart, who called off his 200th residency celebration show in Las Vegas due to suffering from strep throat, and Blink-182, who pulled two US concerts “due to illness”.
Last week meanwhile, PinkPantheress and Garbage both cancelled all their upcoming tour dates for health reasons.
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The Black Keys cancel entire North American tour
The Black Keys have cancelled their entire North American arena tour, scheduled for later this year.
The American duo – Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney – were due to embark on the Live Nation-produced, 31-date International Players Tour, kicking off at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK on 17 September.
It was also slated to visit venues such as Kia Forum in Los Angeles, New York’s Madison Square Garden and the United Center in Chicago, as well as stops at Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and Columbus’ Nationwide Arena in their native Ohio.
However, amid rumours of poor sales and complaints about high ticket prices, the CAA-represented band say they plan to reconfigure the run as a more “intimate experience”, with a revised set of tour dates to be announced in the near future.
“We have decided to make some changes to the North American leg of the International Players Tour that will enable us to offer a similarly exciting, intimate experience”
“The band wants to assure everyone that Dan and Patrick are alive and well,” says a statement on behalf of the pair. “Following the recent run of shows in the UK and Europe, including stops at iconic venues like Brixton Academy and the Zenith in Paris, we have decided to make some changes to the North American leg of the International Players Tour that will enable us to offer a similarly exciting, intimate experience for both fans and the band, and will be announcing a revised set of dates shortly.
“Everyone who had purchased tickets and/or VIP to the initial tour dates will be fully refunded – and when the new plans are announced, will be the first to be able to buy tickets.
“Thank you for your understanding and apologies for the surprise change… We’re pretty sure everyone is going to be excited when you see what we have in mind though, and look forward to seeing everyone soon.”
In other gig news, Nicki Minaj’s 25 May concert at Manchester’s Co-op Live, which was called off at the last minute following her arrest at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, will now take place on 3 June.
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Tamsin Embleton: ‘We need to reimagine the way we tour’
The last few months have seen an unprecedented number of artists pull the plug on tours, citing the detrimental impact of touring on mental health.
Santigold, Arlo Parks, Shawn Mendes, Sam Fender, Russ, Wet Leg and Disclosure are just a handful of artists who scrapped outings, with many referencing the gruelling reality of touring via public statements.
Tamsin Embleton, a psychotherapist and the director of Music Industry Therapists Collective (MITC), called the mental health crisis in the artist community “startlingly widespread” but says many mental health crises are preventable.
In advance of the publication of her new book, ‘Touring and Mental Health, The Music Industry Manual‘ (due 23 March 2023), Embleton shares tips for identifying and coping with the various psychological difficulties that can occur during or as a result of touring.
What’s leading the rise in the number of tour cancellations due to mental health?
As my fellow MITC therapist Jodi Milstein points out, burnouts, breakdowns and relapses have always happened on tour but we used to use euphemisms for it, like ‘exhaustion’. Researchers in the UK and the US have been waving the red flag about the vast number of artists who suffer psychological difficulties when working in the music business since the 1980s, but it’s taken the latest wave of research around six years ago headed up by a paper from Gross and Musgrave and Help Musicians to catalyse substantial change in the industry.
Attitudes have changed a lot since the 80s. We have a greater mental health literacy so there’s less need for euphemism. This is partly down to wider societal trends but also thanks to artists who have publicly disclosed their struggles in the press. This encourages others to reflect, identify problems and seek help. Teams need to be careful that they don’t view an artist’s mental health difficulties as their USP though. Discussing sensitive issues in the press can be distressing – if it happens too early in recovery it can set progress back. And, of course, once it’s out there, it’s out there, and might be probed for years to come. Artists need support in figuring out what they feel comfortable disclosing, what is just theirs and what should remain private.
Touring is intensively stressful from a biological, psychological and social perspective. Stress accumulates on the road – and as it does so it degrades mindset, morale, optimism, tolerance, immunity and every system in the body. It makes it hard to get restorative sleep, and so the cycle continues. Some artists are sent out on the road with schedules they aren’t physically and psychologically able to withstand. Chronic stress can create psychological and physical problems and can exacerbate pre-existing conditions.
For some touring professionals and artists who were grounded during the pandemic, their capacities have changed for better and worse. There might be more awareness of the hidden costs of touring in terms of mental, physical and relational health. The pandemic meant lost earnings and opportunities for many, and there are other issues (low streaming revenue, inflation, the weak pound etc), adding financial pressure and resulting in extra dates being added.
“Touring is a high-stress situation where environmental conditions expose you to rely on unhealthy coping strategies”
What kinds of mental health issues are touring artists prone to currently?
Depression, anxiety (general, performance, social, flight), addiction, dependency and substance misuse problems (alcohol and substance, sex, porn), stress and burnouts, mental health crises (psychosis, self-harm, etc), conflict and anger management difficulties, eating disorders… the list goes on. Touring is a high-stress situation where environmental conditions are changeable and challenging, and the touring lifestyle encourages you to rely on unhealthy coping strategies such as excessive alcohol drinking, indulgent food, smoking, illicit substances, sex etc.
What causes these issues – where are the pressure points?
Touring is stressful to mind, brain, body and relationships. Firstly it takes you away from the people and practices that usually keep you stable (maintaining relationships at home is hard when you are physically and psychologically in different places). You are constantly thrust into unfamiliar spaces like venues and hotels which can be a source of stress in itself. Then the pressure is ramped up – to meet the expectations of a wide number of people (audiences, teams, press, local crews etc). You’re always ‘on’ – expected to deliver to exceptionally high standards night after night, no matter what role you’re in – and that’s hard to maintain.
There are great soaring highs (when performances go well) swiftly followed by lows – a rollercoaster people are rarely adequately prepared for. It starts off as very exciting, but as Nile Rodgers said to me it can be gruelling. The stress levels make it hard to get good quality, restorative sleep and exhaustion add to the cumulative stress. It’s hard to switch off when you’re always gearing up for the next show, which makes it hard to be present and enjoy your surroundings. There’s very little privacy and solitude. Often people talk about loneliness on the road, which is about not feeling connected to people or understood.
“Record labels, managers, and promoters have a duty of care toward artist”
Who is responsible for an artist’s mental health?
The artist has personal responsibility towards their own health and their teams have a duty of care towards their health too. A duty of care is the legal duty of people in positions of trust, power or authority to exercise reasonable care toward those they manage or assume responsibility for. It protects the health, safety and welfare of clients and employees while they carry out their work duties. So, record labels, managers, and promoters have a duty of care toward artists (i.e. anyone who employs the artist to fulfil work, or those who are employed by the artist to make career decisions on their behalf). Artists also have a duty of care toward their touring parties and managers.
Are there more services that artists and crew can reach out to now?
Greater numbers of artists and music industry workers are recognising that they need support and reaching for help. We have many excellent services and charities in the UK serving the community – Help Musicians UK, Music Support, BAPAM, Music Industry Therapist Collective (MITC), Tonic Rider, and grants available from PRS for Music fund, Royal Society of Musicians, StageHand (run by PSA) and others. Majors like Sony, Warners and Universal are offering greater levels of support. There’s a huge number of passionate, highly skilled people working to change things for the better.
“I think all artists could benefit from mentorship and coaching”
How can touring be made sustainable for artists?
That’s a big question and not one that’s easy to answer succinctly! We do need to reimagine the way that people tour. It’s not one-size fits all – capacities vary. Some people are more vulnerable than others.
Some changes can be implemented for free with a little bit of effort like providing ‘dry’ (alcohol free) dressing rooms, signposting to specialist mental health services, local 12-step meetings, green spaces, sports facilities, and ring-fencing time so that they are able to meet with therapists, coaches or sponsors. Others, such as changing the schedule and having sensible routing, have cost implications and raise questions about who pays for the shortfall. There’s a chapter in [‘Touring and Mental Health, The Music Industry Manual’] that addresses this.
What kind of support should artists be provided with?
It depends on what they’re dealing with but it’s helpful to set off feeling prepared. Adequate rehearsal time helps people feel a sense of mastery over the repertoire (which in turn can reduce performance anxiety).
Depending on the individual they might need to visit their GP or psychiatrist for a medication review ahead of the tour. I think all artists could benefit from mentorship and coaching, whether that’s ADHD coaching, vocal or performance training or career coaching. Skills building through psychoeducation, developing an understanding of mind-body connections and finding healthy ways to relax such as self-hypnosis for performance anxiety, meditation and mindfulness etc is important too, which is why we have tried to cover as many bases as possible in the book with chapters on all of these topics.
Then there are a number of psychological therapies that can help people to intercept unhelpful thought patterns, or reflect on their self-perception, formative past experiences and relational dynamics. Artists need to understand the risks to mind and body (including RSI, vocal strain issues like nodules, hearing issues etc) and have the right equipment, such as custom-fitted ear plugs or noise-cancelling headphones for those who struggle with sensory overload.
“We have to be flexible and anticipate life transitions that might cause stress or mean people need to adjust their way of working”
What do artist teams need to remember about artists and their mental health?
Even with the very best of intentions, over-functioning fosters dependency and reduces resilience and tolerance (think: helicopter parents). Try not to dismiss protests or expressions of suffering (verbally or musically) – it means something, so take it seriously. Educate yourself on the warning signs of poor mental health and illness. Think: prevention rather than cure or crisis response.
The industry is highly stressful, and the artists you work with will need to find ways to vent, blow off steam and make sense of it all. Encourage healthy behaviours and model self-care. Put in boundaries around communication and when some time is blocked off in the diary, don’t tempt the artist into working during their time off. It’s important they (and you) have some semblance of a life, and relationships outside of work. Social support is a vital source of stress relief throughout life, so we should try to help people stay connected to loved ones whilst out on the road.
Pre-order ‘Touring and Mental Health, The Music Industry Manual’ here. Contact David Stock for bulk buys: [email protected]
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Metronomy, Stormzy latest acts to call off tours
Tour cancellations are mounting, with Metronomy and Stormzy becoming the latest artists to scrap plans.
In the last couple of months, Santigold, Arlo Parks, Shawn Mendes, Sam Fender, Russ, Wet Leg and Disclosure have all cancelled dates due to mental health concerns, while Placebo, alt-J, Pale Waves and Anthrax have scrapped appearances due to “logistical issues”.
Yesterday (29 September) English electronic group Metronomy followed suit, pulling the plug on their upcoming tour of North America.
“Touring America is one of the most expensive and exhausting things a band can do,” wrote the band in a post on Instagram.
“When you’re a young band, that time spent touring the states is the only way that you would want to spend it. But, when you’re a little older and a little wiser, you start weighing up the time you spend on the road against the time you spend with loved ones at home,” it continued.
“Right now, it doesn’t make sense for us to come I’m afraid. We’ve had an incredibly busy year of gigs and festivals and now need to afford some of the same time and attention to our home lives.”
The tour was due to kick off this October but the majority of shows have now been postponed until May 2023. The band will still play their Los Angeles show at The Wiltern on 27 October and at the Pepsi Centre in Mexico City two days later as planned.
View this post on Instagram
Meanwhile, Stormzy has called time on his Australia and New Zealand tour due to “circumstances beyond my control”.
“It is with the heaviest of hearts that I have to inform you guys that due to circumstances beyond my control, I must cancel international commitments for the remainder of the year which includes my Australian and New Zealand tour,” a statement from the rapper reads.
“You guys have waited so patiently and I am so sorry that this has to happen after all these ups and downs. I love you guys and I promise I will be back as soon as I can with a show that’s bigger and better than ever.”
Stormzy was set to perform at Spilt Milk festival as well as headline shows at HBF Stadium in Perth, two nights at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Riverstage in Brisbane, John Cain Arena in Melbourne and AEC Theatre in Adelaide.
The shows were originally scheduled for 2020 before being halted by the pandemic. Many fans have waited close to three years for the shows after buying tickets. It was set to be Stormzy’s first appearance in Australia in five years.
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Tour cancellations mount over coronavirus surge
The global surge in Covid-19 cases is continuing to wreak havoc on the international live calendar, with a growing number of early 2022 tours cancelled or postponed.
Rod Stewart’s scheduled nine-date spring run in Australia and New Zealand, originally scheduled for 2020, became the highest-profile casualty to date following the rapid spread of the Omicron variant.
“Live Nation wishes to advise that due to the ongoing surge of Covid in Australia and the reimposition of entertainment venue capacity limits in several states, Sir Rod Stewart’s scheduled March/April tour of Australia and New Zealand has, regrettably, been cancelled,” says a statement.
Stewart says he looks forward to returning to Australia “as soon as the health situation permits”.
Earlier this month, three more Australian music festivals were cancelled or postponed in the space of 24 hours after New South Wales banned singing and dancing at unseated events.
NSW’s Grapevine Gathering fell by the wayside four days before it was due to take place, while touring metal and punk festival Full Tilt postponed its Brisbane edition until the end of April and cancelled its Adelaide concert set for 29 January.
Indoor dance floors at hospitality and entertainment venues in Victoria have also been temporarily closed in a bid to combat the coronavirus spike.
“It feels like a particularly volatile time to go ahead with such a large tour”
UK band Blossoms postponed European tour dates planned for January and February in Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands, while Wolf Alice opted to reschedule their January UK shows.
“As the Covid pandemic seems to be getting worse and with an overwhelming number of daily cases, it feels like a particularly volatile time to go ahead with such a large tour,” the latter said in a statement. “People’s safety and access to our concerts is of the utmost importance to us and we feel that is something we can’t ensure at these large indoor shows.”
Tightened measures were blamed for the postponement of Little Simz’ European tour, which was due to have visited Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, France and Luxembourg before finishing in Austria on 1 February, just five days before it was due to start. Rising star Rina Sawayama also pulled her March European tour due to Covid concerns.
Last week, Dead & Company and promoter CID Presents cancelled their Playing in the Sand destination festival in Mexico less than 24 hours before it was due to take place. The annual event had been set for Riviera Cancun over two weekends from 7-10 and 13-16 January, but has been axed due to a spike in coronavirus cases. Frontman John Mayer had earlier pulled out of the festival after testing positive.
In the US, The Strokes have rescheduled their Barclays Center show – initially set for New Year’s Eve 2021 before Omicron intervened – for 6 April, and Billy Joel has switched his 14 January Madison Square Garden concert to 24 August. The 2022 Grammy Awards, scheduled for 31 January at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena, have also been postponed indefinitely.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands’ live sector’s hopes for a swift reopening appear to have been dashed according to media reports, which suggest cultural venues are expected to remain closed “for the time being”.
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