The Weeknd Postpones Australian Tour

The Weeknd has postponed his Australian tour.

Citing “unforeseen circumstances”, the Canadian hitmaker (real name Abel Tesfaye) shocked punters with the news this afternoon. The highly anticipated tour was due to begin in just three weeks.

Tickets bought for his November tour dates will be valid for the rescheduled dates, which will be announced in 2024. Refunds will also be available for fans who can’t attend the new dates.

The Weeknd was due to bring his After Hours Til Dawn tour to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. The initial show announcements were met with phenomenal demand, with extra shows added for each state.

He was scheduled to perform at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on Monday, 20, and Tuesday, 21 November, followed by three shows at Sydney’s Accor Stadium (24, 25 and 27 November) and four concerts at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium in early December (1, 2, 4, 5 December). Chxrry22 and Mike Dean were meant to be the special guests on all shows.

In a statement to his fans in Australia and New Zealand, The Weeknd wrote, “Due to unforeseen circumstances, we must reschedule the Australia/New Zealand tour. New dates will be announced next year, and current tickets will be valid for the new shows. Refunds will be available for those unable to attend the new dates. Deeply disappointed but can't wait to be there with you!”

A representative for Live Nation Australia and New Zealand added, “We understand fans will be disappointed, and Live Nation is focused on working with The Weeknd to secure a new tour schedule. We will make a further announcement as soon as possible.”

Fans began voicing their concerns about the upcoming tour yesterday (2 November) when ticketing links to The Weeknd’s shows that weren’t sold out suddenly went dead.

The Blinding Lights singer also removed the information about his Australian and New Zealand dates from his Instagram bio. The Weeknd’s most recent tour date was in Mexico on 25 October.

The After Hours Til Dawn Tour celebrates The Weeknd’s latest albums, 2020’s After Hours and his January 2022 release, Dawn FM. So far on this tour, The Weeknd has broken attendance records in London and Milan, selling hundreds of thousands of tickets all across Europe.

When the tour announcement arrived in August, it was three months after The Weeknd revealed that he’d no longer make music as The Weeknd. “The visuals are vital to my career,” he told W Magazine in May before admitting, “The album I’m working on now is probably my last hurrah as The Weeknd.

“This is something that I have to do. As The Weeknd, I’ve said everything I can say.”

The Weeknd last toured Australia in December 2017. The Music reviewer Madelyn Tait wrote about his show at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena, “The Weeknd proved himself as a phenomenal live act with an extensive discography of hits.”