- 11 minutes ago
The show must go on… until it doesn't. Join us as we count down the most massive concert tours and residencies that completely fell apart! From health crises and band breakups to shocking no-shows and canceled farewell laps, these tours had everything going for them—until they didn't. Which doomed run hurts the most? Let us know in the comments!
Category
🎵
MusicTranscript
00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're taking a look at massive concert tours and residencies
00:04that collapsed, unraveled, or just plain imploded. We're basing our choices on the
00:08sheer scale of the production, the number of cancelled shows, and the lasting fallout.
00:12The cancellation comes on the heels of all that publicity for
00:15negative publicity for Kanye West's interruption of Taylor Swift at the VMAs.
00:20Loop Tour, Ed Sheeran.
00:22So the head of the Patriots speaking out tonight after Macklemore says he got kicked off a tour
00:27because of a boycott started by Robert Kraft, who says the rapper made hurtful comments to the
00:32Jewish community. Chances are you've heard of this one. The dominoes started falling when Macklemore
00:36made pro-Palestinian statements and performed Hins Hall during his opening set at MetLife Stadium
00:42in East Rutherford, New Jersey. He was quickly booted from the tour, a move Sheeran claimed
00:45came from the promoter and venues, not him. I would never let down the fans who'd made plans,
00:50nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work
00:56and to make a living. I have my personal views on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose
01:02not to speak publicly, it does not mean I don't have them, and it doesn't mean that I don't care.
01:08Fellow openers Phineas, Lucas Graham, and Aaron Rowe all subsequently bailed,
01:12and even members of Sheeran's longtime collaborating band, Bioga, walked away.
01:16Sheeran kept the tour moving, playing Philadelphia with replacement musicians and handling parts of the
01:20show Totally Solo. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.
01:29My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians' lives, of children's lives.
01:36Urban Hymns Tour, The Verb
01:46Urban Hymns crowned The Verb as Britpop royalty. Unfortunately, the rush to cash in on that massive
01:51success pushed the already fragile band right over the edge. The Verb booked massive American arenas
01:56for their 1998 tour, only to face embarrassing downgrades to smaller venues when ticket sales
02:01lacked.
02:01I think we haven't satisfied our hunger to make, you know, we've not made enough records yet,
02:06basically. And I think that's what we're really going to concentrate on, although we won't ignore
02:10the life side of it. But we don't want to kill ourselves, and we don't want to go down the
02:14roads
02:14we went before, where we were unable to record or think about writing music because we've been out
02:20on the road too long. And I think a lot of bands suffer from that.
02:22Then Massive Attack dropped out as the opener, and guitarist Nick McCabe quit the tour entirely,
02:27citing severe stress. They drafted pedal steel guitarist BJ Cole to fill the gap,
02:31but the magic just wasn't there. They dragged themselves across the finish line with an
02:34August 1998 show at Slain Castle, only to officially break up the following April.
02:48Public Service Announcement Tour
02:49Rage Against the Machine
02:56Rage Against the Machine's hugely hyped reunion felt cursed before they even played a single
03:00power chord. Announced in 2019, the Public Service Announcement Tour was slated for a March 2020
03:05launch. COVID punted it to 2021, then 2022, with chunks of the tour bumped all the way to 2023.
03:15During the second show, singer Zack de la Rocha tore his Achilles tendon. He powered through the
03:19North American legs sitting down before the European dates were scrapped. Eventually, the 2023 shows
03:24quietly vanished too. In the end, they managed 19 shows while 38 went up in smoke. Drummer Brad
03:30Wilk later broke the news that the band was done touring for good.
03:45We're going to begin the hour with the breaking news from the music world this morning. Another
03:50concerning update on the health of Celine Dion. She has canceled her remaining tour dates now through
03:56early 2024. The Courage World Tour was supposed to be a triumphant new chapter for Celine Dion.
04:02It was her first global trek without her late husband and manager, Rene Angelil. And things
04:07kicked off beautifully in Quebec City in September 2019. She knocked out 52 shows before the pandemic
04:12slammed the brakes in March 2020. Organizers desperately shuffled dates to save the sprawling
04:17itinerary when Dion's health took center stage.
04:19I'm so sorry to disappoint all of you once again. And even though it breaks my heart,
04:23it's best that we cancel everything until I'm really ready to be back on stage. I'm not giving up.
04:28And I can't wait to see you again. So that is what has just been released just in the last
04:34little while this morning. The remaining North American dates were scrapped in early 2022 due to
04:38severe muscle spasms. Some months passed before Dion shared the heartbreaking news of her stiff
04:43person syndrome diagnosis, a rare neurological disorder that directly impacted her ability to
04:47move and sing. By May 2023, the entire European leg was officially canceled.
04:51For me to reach you again, I have no choice but to concentrate on my health at this moment.
05:02And I have hope that I'm on the road to recovery.
05:08Dig out your soul tour. Oasis.
05:10Here, Nor Gallagher has announced he's quitting the band Oasis. He says he can no longer work with
05:15his brother Liam after a series of rows. Last night, the band canceled a performance in Paris.
05:20By 2009, the infamously volatile relationship between brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher had
05:25rotted to the point where they practically only communicated while on stage. On August 28th,
05:30they were set to headline the Rock on Seine Festival near Paris. Literally minutes before
05:34showtime, a brutal backstage blowout led to the gig's abrupt cancellation.
05:37Recently, I don't think they've spent a lot of time together apart from the time when they've
05:40actually been on stage. I mean, as I understand it, last week when they were playing at the V
05:45Festival in Staffordshire, on the Saturday, they both went to the Manchester City game,
05:49were at different ends of the ground, and then got separate cars to the gig, and eventually
05:54met up when they walked on stage. Two hours later, Noel dropped a statement announcing he
05:58had quit Oasis. The final shows in Germany and Italy were axed, and the Britpop titans were no
06:03more. It would take 16 years for the Gallaghers to bury the hatchet for their triumphant 2025
06:07reunion. Tired of your favorite artists pulling the plug on their dates and storming off stage?
06:23Don't worry, you can always count on WatchMojo's 24-7 pop culture live stream to keep the show going.
06:28Scan the QR code on screen right now to join us live for non-stop music, movie, and pop culture
06:33countdowns. Guaranteed zero cancellations. Justice World Tour, Justin Bieber.
06:42I feel like this is different than the previous albums just because of where I'm at in my life.
06:55I'm excited to perform it and to tour it. Originally hyped as 2020's Changes Tour,
07:00this doomed run was swallowed whole by the pandemic before being resurrected as the Justice World Tour.
07:05Bieber finally got the wheels turning in San Diego in February 2022, only for lingering COVID cases to
07:11immediately throw a wrench in the schedule. But the knockout blow landed that June when Bieber shocked
07:15fans with a Ramsey-Hunt syndrome diagnosis. Left with partial facial paralysis, he had no choice but to
07:34call the whole thing off. He pushed through for a brief, brave comeback later that year, including a
07:39massive set at Rock and Rio, but the physical toll was simply too heavy. Every remaining date was put on
07:44ice until 2023, when the tour was officially declared dead. When someone pulls remaining dates
07:49of a tour, it means they would have done real damage to themselves if they kept going. He added,
07:54we've lost so many great artists lately. I give Justin thumbs up for realizing it was time to call it.
08:00You should too. Fame kills Kanye West and Lady Gaga. All right, welcome back to the most news in the
08:05morning. Here's what we're following now for you. Just days after they announced the dates, Kanye West and
08:10Lady Gaga are canceling their tour. Live Nation announced the news yesterday and said refunds
08:15will be issued. On paper, Fame Kills was primed to be the most spectacular pop tour of the decade,
08:19with Kanye West and Lady Gaga headed for a massive co-headlining collision of the 808s and Heartbreak
08:24and the Fame Monster eras. 34 North American arena dates were locked in for late 2009 into 2010.
08:30Alas, it wasn't meant to be. On October 1st, Fame Kills died.
08:33Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you. I'm gonna let you finish. But Beyonce had one of the best
08:40videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time. The cancellation hit mere weeks after
08:48Kanye hijacked Taylor Swift's VMA acceptance speech. While Live Nation stayed tight-lipped
08:52on the official reason, Gaga called it a mutual decision. And industry whispers pointed to heavy
08:57creative friction. Gaga pivoted at lightning speed to launch her solo Monster Ball tour,
09:01while Kanye retreated from the public eye. Fame Kills remains one of pop's greatest what-ifs.
09:07When you're really friends with somebody, you can make difficult decisions. And we made a very
09:12difficult decision. It was hard on both of us. But, you know, when we were talking, I said,
09:17you know, even though this isn't happening right now, I'm gonna still go out on the road. And he said,
09:25great, and I support you.
09:27Peace out the farewell tour. Aerosmith.
09:30We gotta put these rumors to bed.
09:33Hello?
09:34Listen, I got somebody cleaning out my f***ing popper over here. He's trying to say,
09:37there's something going on. That's not true, right?
09:40It's true. All I can say is,
09:44peace out!
09:45Aerosmith designed Peace Out to be the ultimate victory lap,
09:48celebrating over a half-century of rock and roll. Instead, their grand farewell lasted exactly
09:53three shows. They kicked off in Philadelphia on September 2nd, 2023, bringing the Black Crows along for
09:58the ride. After just one week and three gigs, Steven Tyler suffered severe vocal cord damage.
10:03Aerosmith is postponing all of this year's remaining concerts, including the New Year's Eve show
10:08at TD Garden. The band says Steven Tyler's vocal injury is actually more serious than initially
10:14thought. And on top of the damage to his vocal cords, Tyler has actually fractured his larynx.
10:19The band hit pause, hoping to reschedule once Tyler healed up. They even rolled out a revised
10:24schedule, pushing into 2025. On August 2nd, 2024, though, Aerosmith dropped a bombshell.
10:29Tyler's voice wasn't recovering, and they were retiring from the road effective immediately.
10:33In an era where so-called farewell tours often drag on for years, Aerosmith suffered the exact
10:37opposite fate. Sadly, it is clear that a full recovery from his vocal injury is not possible.
10:43We have made a heartbreaking and difficult but necessary decision as a band of brothers to retire
10:50from the touring stage. Chinese Democracy Tour, Guns N' Roses.
10:54Guns N' Roses. It's been too long since you've had your ass kicked properly.
10:58While the legendary Chinese Democracy Tour technically spanned multiple years and continents,
11:03its 2002 North American leg was nothing short of pure, unadulterated chaos. Hyped as Guns
11:08N' Roses' first North American go-round since 1993, despite the actual album being nowhere
11:13in sight, the tour was a powder keg from day one. Literally day one.
11:16Glass doors at GM Place were smashed. Dozens hurling steel barricades towards the building,
11:22while others took pictures in front of the destruction.
11:25Opening night in Vancouver set the tone. Axl Rose never showed up to the venue, sparking a full-blown
11:30riot outside. The wheels completely came off in Philadelphia. Fans sat through the opening
11:34acts only for GNR to no-show again, triggering yet another riot. Promoter Clear Channel had seen
11:40enough and immediately pulled the plug on the entire leg. The album Chinese Democracy wouldn't
11:44see the light of day until 2008.
11:52This Is It, Michael Jackson.
11:54This will be my final show performances in London. This will be it. This is it. And when I say
12:06this is it, it really means this is it.
12:08Okay, strictly speaking, This Is It was a concert residency, not a traditional traveling tour,
12:12but its unprecedented scale, immense hype, and heartbreaking cancellation make it impossible
12:17to leave out. In March 2009, Michael Jackson announced 10 shows at London's O2 Arena.
12:22The run quickly exploded into 50 shows, stretching into 2010 when over a million fans crashed presale
12:26sites, buying up hundreds of thousands of tickets in hours.
12:29The tickets went on sale at 7am. These two were at the very front of the queue.
12:34We had rain, our tent got flooded, but just because we knew that we were going to see
12:38Michael, we're here for Michael, we'll do anything.
12:43This die-hard fan was so desperate for tickets that he traveled all the way from France.
12:48Tragically, Jackson never made it to opening night. The King of Pop passed away on June 25th,
12:522009, just 18 days before the curtain was set to rise. Fans were left with the choice of refunds
12:57or commemorative tickets, and rehearsal footage was then stitched together for a documentary.
13:01There's the man. There's Michael. The man is here.
13:06So that we can give you this. A million people. Michael, do you like this, first of all?
13:11Yeah, that's a cool move. Okay. Cool move, but it spreads out too much to the end.
13:16So we can just stop it whenever you hit the space button? Boom.
13:19Which of these doomed concert tours do you wish you could have witnessed?
13:22And what other disastrous series of shows should have made our video?
13:25Be sure to let us know in the comments.
13:27Bye.