International Act Pulls Out Of Vivid After Facing Loss In The Family

Devonté Hynes, aka the artist known as Blood Orange, has pulled out of his performance with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra at the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall for Vivid LIVE this Friday, 2 June, after the recent passing of his mother. 

The UK singer, songwriter, and record producer is a pioneer who makes music spanning alternative and progressive elements of R&B, as well as experimental jazz.

Hynes released four albums as Blood Orange from 2008 until 2018, as well as the Angel’s Pulse mixtape in 2019 and the Four Songs EP last year. Under his real name, Hynes has provided music for films and television series including last year’s American crime thriller Master Gardener, starring Australia’s Joel Edgerton alongside Sigourney Weaver.

Hynes’ performance at Vivid LIVE would have been his first in Australia in over a decade. Described as “a suite of classical works that draw upon his genre-defying, multimedia sounds, accompanied by the might of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra,” the performance promised to be a special one.

Last night (28 May), however, Hynes announced that he would not be able to make it to Vivid, or his scheduled performances in Toronto, Vienna or Washington DC (all accompanied by orchestras).

“Hi, so after a lot of thought, I have decided that in addition to last week's performance in Toronto, I am not able to play the upcoming classical shows scheduled in Vienna, Sydney and Washington DC due to a recent loss in my family,” Hynes wrote in his Instagram Stories yesterday.

He continued, “I will be honest and say that I am not able to be onstage right now, and will take this time to grieve and focus on getting myself together. I am so sorry to all those who had bought tickets and made travel arrangements, your support means a lot to me and I deeply apologise. 

“We are working on finding dates to reschedule where possible, all ticket holders will be emailed refund information in the meantime. Please visit individual event pages for additional details. Thank you.”

Vivid LIVE organisers also issued a statement, issuing condolences to Hynes and his family and assuring fans that they will be notified as soon as the show is rescheduled.

“Unfortunately Devonté Hynes with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performance will not proceed as scheduled,” reads a statement on the Vivid website. “Due to the recent passing of his mother, Devonté has decided to postpone his Australian visit.

“Our thoughts and condolences are with Devonté and his family at this sad time. We are working to reschedule the event for 2024 and we will keep you updated. All ticketholders have been notified.”