Entertainment

Janelle Monae Cancels Australian Tour

by Kenya Foy

People may have been weirded out by that Micheal Jackson hologram Billboard Awards performance, but with the recent rash of celebrities canceling tour dates due to illness, the technology seems like a handy backup plan for singers who temporarily find themselves amongst the sick and shut-in. The Electric Lady singer is the latest performer to bow out of a string of shows after failing to recover from an unspecified illness. Janelle Monáe has canceled the Australian leg of her Golden Electric tour, which included dates in Brisbane, Sydney, Auckland, New Zealand and Melbourne. According to a brief statement released by Monáe's reps, there will be no rescheduled performances.

Initially, Monáe had only canceled a couple dates, with one of the show's being declared a no-go only 30 minutes before she was set to take the stage and after the band had already set up. Monáe joins a list of celebrities whose tours were recently postponed or canceled due to illness, including Miley Cyrus and an ailing Paul McCartney, who just called off his entire tour of Japan.

Hopefully Monae's illness won't impact her upcoming U.S. tour dates, which are coming up within the next two weeks. She's set to perform at The Roots Picnic in Philadelphia on May 31 with additional shows in New York and L.A. before returning overseas in August for several shows in Europe.

It's a shame that Australia will miss out on the chance to see a riveting Janelle Monáe performance. Anyone who's seen her on stage knows that she exerts a ton of energy and completely morphs into this out-of-control female version of James Brown. She does have a lot going on including her participation in the 2014 World Cup campaign, so as sucky as this news is, let's hope she recovers soon. Once she's back on her feet, she'll surely give her fans what they've come to expect from her, which is a heartfelt set fit for a Q.U.E.E.N.