Stephen SanchezMulti-Platinum American singer-songwriter Stephen Sanchez has cancelled his forthcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand – and his remaining tour dates for this year – citing difficulties with promoting his latest album and the constant need to be online to succeed in the music industry.
Sanchez was set to return to Australia and New Zealand in support of his new album, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, next month.
Tour promoters Frontier Touring have also confirmed that the tour will no longer go ahead, telling The Music: “The decision to cancel the AUS and NZ shows was made together with Stephen and with his team. Unfortunately, it was not the right time for him to be touring the market, but we look forward to his return to Australia and New Zealand in the future.”
Sanchez made a statement about the cancelled tour dates on social media this morning (16 June), in which he said he’s “truly sorry” for disappointing fans by cancelling shows without explanation. So, he explained what’s been happening behind the scenes and what led to his decision to cancel tours.
“I'm sitting in an airport trying to express feelings that need so much context and so much detail for everyone to understand in full. I realize [sic] some of you might not,” the Until I Found You hitmaker began.
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He continued, “The cancellation of the NZ/AU Tour without explanation has left some of you with questions, and I imagine some frustrated feelings as well. I know many of you had hotels and flights booked. I'm truly sorry for that. I imagine the frustration and confusion will continue, as the unannounced US tour will also not be happening this year. I am also truly sorry for that.”
Sanchez went on to explain that last year, he spent the majority of his time working on his latest album, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. This period of time resulted in feelings of “never-ending conflict, stress, anxiety, and overall, deeply negative energy” surrounding the creative process of working on the album and subsequent promotion of the songs.
He admitted that due to these difficulties, they “absolutely ruined this music for me” and made him want to “quit making music all together [sic].”
Sanchez then embarked on a tour across Europe and the UK in the hopes that his feelings towards LOVE, LOVE, LOVE would change. “It unfortunately did not,” he shared. Expressing gratitude to his fans, Sanchez added that what made him feel better was being at home with his family and friends.
Sanchez also explained that what made him feel even more discouraged was hearing popular music while he was working on LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, which he described as having “disgusting, heavily pornographic lyrics” and not acting to serve listeners in any way, and “being on social media every day” to be a successful artist in 2026.
“Music needs to do better. What's said is so important; what we leave behind is so important. It left me feeling so depressed as an artist,” Sanchez wrote.
He continued, “It also seems that an artist's success relies heavily on this one thing: Being on social media everyday. Sharing every piece of themselves with the world. Being a ‘musical influencer’. Doing something shocking in their look or their writing. Having things ‘go viral’ every waking second in order to have anyone ‘in your corner’ trust or even listen to your artistic vision.”
Sanchez added that he’s “so sick” of those expectations and “done” with the performative nature of presenting himself on social media. He concluded the post, “I'm going to make the art that I want to make and promote it in a way that feels restful for me. I will come back when I feel that I've create [sic] that space for myself. Until then, I love you guys. See you soon.”
You can read Sanchez’s statement in its entirety below.
