Mega pop star Adele was in tears in a video she released late Thursday as she broke news to her ardent fans that she would be postponing her Las Vegas residency shows — just 24 hours before the opening night.
“I’m so sorry, but my show ain’t ready,” she said in the video.
“We’ve tried absolutely everything that we can to put it together in time and for it to be good enough for you, but we’ve been absolutely destroyed by delivery delays and covid. Half my crew, half my team are down with covid. They still are,” she added, apologizing to fans who were traveling to watch her.
“I’m gutted, and I’m sorry it’s so last minute; we’ve been awake for over 30 hours now trying to figure it out, and we’ve run out of time,” Adele said. “I’m really embarrassed.”
She promised all dates would be rescheduled.
The British singer’s announcement came a day before the Vegas show, “Weekends With Adele,” was due to open Friday, the start of a residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace that was to run through April 16. Ticket prices ranged from a few hundred dollars to as much as $30,000 on resale sites, according to Forbes.
Some fans, many of whom had traveled to Vegas in excited anticipation, were angry over the lack of notice.
“I traveled all the way from Sydney Australia to see Adele tomorrow in Vegas. I spent thousands of dollars on this trip and now she canceled the night before. Very unprofessional and I am heartbroken,” wrote one person on Twitter.
“I am so crushed,” wrote another.
When it’s your bday and your bday present was Adele tickets to her opening night and she cancels not even 24 hours before 🤯
— girl fieri (@kevinsdogmom) January 20, 2022
Others were more upbeat: “Landed in Las Vegas to discover tomorrow’s Adele concert was canceled like I heard was probably going to happen. These tickets will wait for another day. But I’m here! I still adore Adele. Life is short & precious, & I’m glad I at least tried.”
My heart is breaking watching this, for @Adele and for everyone who was excited to see her show 🥺💔 https://t.co/Y7YzPZP2Gp
— PHIL 🪐 (@GrandpaHive) January 21, 2022
“We understand the disappointment surrounding the postponement,” Caesars Palace said in a statement. “Adele is an incredible artist, supremely dedicated to her music and her fans. Creating a show of this magnitude is incredibly complex.”
Pop star Pink said she understood the pressures, writing on Instagram: “Sweetheart I have been there. The pressure is immense and I’m gutted for all of you. It will come together and it will be amazing when it does.” American poet Amanda Gorman also commented: “We love you — thank you for doing what is right even when it isn’t easy.”
Some fans wrote online they planned to meet up in Vegas anyway and suggested convening outside the Colosseum later on Friday to sing Adele’s hit “Hold On” through speakers to rally and comfort the pop star.
After an almost six-year hiatus, the 33-year-old musician released an emotive album in November, titled “30,” with the first song “Easy on Me” shattering records on both Spotify and Amazon Music just a day after its release.