Welp, that’s that.
After hosting over 70,000 fans in Kansas City, and over 90,000 fans in Lincoln, Nebraska, these past two weekends, Garth Brooks has opted to cancel the remainder of his Stadium Tour this year.
Nixing dates in Seattle, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Boston and the rescheduled date in Nashville, Garth issued the following statement regarding the decision to postpone all of his shows:
“In July, I sincerely thought the pandemic was falling behind us. Now, watching this new wave, I realize we are still in the fight and I must do my part.
I have asked the wonderful cities of Cincinnati and Charlotte to wait too long and I don’t want to now do that same thing to the great folks in Boston and Baltimore.
As far as Nashville, we are looking for a make up date from the July rain out and though this is not COVID related, to make them wait makes me sad, as well.
So, it is with a heavy heart we announce the decision to cancel all 5 shows but with a hopeful heart, we will reschedule and start over when this wave seems to be behind us.
The joy I have seen in everyone’s faces as live music returns has been more than worth our constant diligence to maintain safety protocols not only for the fans, but for our band, the crew and the hard working staff in these stadiums.
Their dedication to safety for the people who fill those seats has been a miracle to watch and a blessing to receive. I am truly grateful.”
The 5 concert locations being cancelled are Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, on September 18th, Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, on September 25th, M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, on October 2nd, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, on October 9th, and finally Nissan Stadium in Nashville, which has not been rescheduled yet after storms forced them to cancel the first show.
Full refund will be issued to all ticket-holders, and Garth will look to reschedule all of the shows for dates in 2022.
The Kansas City Health Department recently teamed up with Garth to offer a pop-up vaccine clinic ahead of his show at Arrowhead Stadium, however they were unhappy to report that only 35 people took advantage of the offer.
Garth added that he was hoping to reschedule by the end of the year, but also that giving the fans the best show, as well as the safest, he possibly can is his number one priority.
“I’m sincerely hoping we are back on tour before the year’s end. With that said, the most important thing to me is fulfilling my end of the Stadium Tour by making sure every show is doable before putting tickets on sale (that is why we pulled the Seattle on sale).
Making sure the environment these people are trading their time and money to put themselves into is not only the best experience ever, but also the safest one we can provide.”
As many venues and promoters, as well as artists, look to require vaccinations and/or negative tests for entry to shows, Garth has opted to cancel his shows all together.
I suppose Garth is one of the few artists that can really afford to cancel everything for the rest of the year, but it definitely isn’t a good sign for the rest of fall tours.
Stay tuned.
That was motherhusking AWESOME!!! love, g #GARTHinLINCOLN pic.twitter.com/yhjnpxuXGF
— Garth Brooks (@garthbrooks) August 15, 2021