HOLLYWOOD—I still can’t believe I’m writing about the pandemic, it’s been two long years. The highly contagious omicron variant has led to a spike in coronavirus infections across the U.S. at the start of 2022, with the number increasing every day-and as a result, COVID-19 continues to take its toll on the live music industry. As announcements of cancellations and postponements roll in, here are some of the latest artists that have cancelled or rescheduled.
The pandemic continues to wreak havoc among the celebrities, by postponing their tours. The latest is Sir Elton John, who has been forced to postpone two concerts in Dallas, Texas after recently testing positive for the coronavirus. The icon, 74, is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is currently experiencing only mild symptoms, according to a post on his Instagram.
The global pandemic has caused many delays in his Sir Elton’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road world tour. Another British superstar, Adele cancelled her US shows last week. Elton’s Dallas shows were originally scheduled to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday. Sir Elton wrote on Instagram that, “It’s always a massive disappointment to move shows and I’m so sorry to anyone who’s been inconvenienced by this, but I want to keep myself and my team safe. He also assured his fans they would be contacted once new dates had been announced. Elton said he expects to be able to perform at scheduled shows in Arkansas this weekend. The changes are the latest setback in what has been an ill-fated final tour for the musician.
Farewell Yellow Brick Road began in 2018 as Sir Elton’s curtain call after more than half a century on the road. The busy schedule of more than 300 shows worldwide was repeatedly interrupted, first by the pandemic-related restrictions, then because Sir Elton needed hip surgery after a fall in September 2021. The show restarted after almost two years last Wednesday in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Londoner-who once had seven consecutive number-one albums in the US-is expected to crisscross through the country until April, when he begins the European leg of his tour. At this point, it’s not yet clear if the tour, will go forward or be postponed.
Pop star Adele shared a tearful video on January 20 in which she announced that she was postponing her Las Vegas residency, which was scheduled to kick off the following day. “I’m so sorry, but my show ain’t ready,” she said. “We’ve tried absolutely everything that we can to pull it together in time and for it to be good enough for you, but we’ve been absolutely destroyed by delivery delays and Covid. Half my crew, half my team are down with Covid. They still are. And it’s impossible to finish the show.”
Billy Joel announced via Twitter that his January 14th show in Madison Square Garden will now be taking place on August 24, making it the second postponement for the event. “Nothing is more important to me than the safety and well-being of my band, crew, and the fans; so due to unfortunate Covid-related circumstances, we made the decision to reschedule the January 14th concert at MSG,” Joel wrote.
David Lee Roth, the 66-year-old former Van Halen singer was slated to cap his career with a string of five farewell residency shows at Las Vegas House of Blues at Mandalay Bay in January after canceling his planned New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day shows at the venue due to the rapid spread of the Omicron Covid-19 variant. The shows are now listed as canceled on the venue’s site. Roth’s reps are saying the shows would be pushed to February 11-12.
The 64th Grammy Awards have been postponed due to the spreading COVID-19 omicron variant. The event was originally set for January 31 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, but will now move to spring-possibly in April.
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