Fans of the former One Direction singer Harry Styles will have to wait until next year before they get to see him perform as the global coronavirus pandemic has pushed the singer to postpone the dates on his North American tour.
Billboard reports that rather than begin this month as originally planned, Styles’s Love On Tour North American tour has instead been rescheduled to the summer of 2021. Rather than the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the 2021 edition of Love On Tour will instead happen on Aug. 14, 2021 at the Tacoma Dome before moving all around the United States.
While the dates may have changed, Billboard notes that all of the opening acts initially announced will stay the same. In fact, fans attending the Madison Square Garden performance will actually be treated to performances from guest stars Orville Peck and Madison Cunningham as part of a special “Harryween” Fancy Dress Party, as the concert falls on Oct. 31.
As noted by Rolling Stone, Styles himself offered up the global coronavirus pandemic as a reason for the postponement in a statement on his Instagram page. The singer said that his top priority would always be the safety of his fans and the crew he works with and promised that he would be on the road again as soon as it is safe to do so.
Aside from the tour postponement, Styles also took the opportunity to talk about the ongoing Black Lives Matter protest that was sparked by the killing of George Floyd. Styles called the current unrest as “a moment of necessary change and growth.” He also shared that he was going to use the time freed up by the tour postponement as an opportunity learn more about the movement and how he can help out in the fight.
The postponement of Style’s North American tour is just the latest in a growing list of events that have had to either postpone or cancel because of the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic. Popular music festival Coachella had to totally cancel its 2020 edition, making it the first time the festival was not held since 2001. Other events that have been canceled or postponed include the country music festival Stagecoach, the Lollapalooza Festival, South by Southwest, and the Ultra Festival. Bonnaroo and the Electric Daisy Carnival.
Whether the new dates for Styles’s 2021 tour will push through depends on what the situation is regarding the coronavirus by then. Currently, the World Health Organization’s June 11 situation report puts the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases around the world at 7,273,958, with new cases making up 128,419 of that total. Deaths caused by COVID-19 globally are now at 413,372 people.
In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s June 11 update stated that there are now 1,973,797 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 112,133 deaths.