Lewis Capaldi announces break after emotional Glastonbury set
Singer Lewis Capaldi has announced he will be taking a break from touring “for the foreseeable future”, saying he is “still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette’s.”
It comes after the star struggled during his set at Glastonbury Festival over the weekend, with fans in the crowd singing for him as he stopped on stage during his hit song Someone You Loved.
Sharing an update on social media, Capaldi said it had been “the most difficult decision of my life”, but his performance on the Pyramid Stage had made it “obvious that I need to spend much more time getting my mental and physical health in order” to be able to keep doing “everything I love for a long time to come”.
The 26-year-old singer had previously cancelled three weeks of shows to rest and recover ahead of the festival.
On stage, he repeatedly apologised for losing his voice, and told fans they probably would not “see much of me for the rest of the year”.
In a statement posted on Tuesday, he thanked “Glastonbury for having me, for singing along when I needed it and for all the amazing messages afterwards”, adding: “It really does mean the world.”
“The fact that this probably won’t come as a surprise probably doesn’t make it any easier to write, but I’m very sorry to let you know I’m going to be taking a break from touring for the foreseeable future,” Capaldi said.
“I used to be able to enjoy every second of shows like this and I’d hoped 3 weeks away would sort me out. But the truth is I’m still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette’s and on Saturday it became obvious that I need to spend much more time getting my mental and physical health in order, so I can keep doing everything I love for a long time to come.”
‘Incredibly sorry’
The star went on to acknowledge being “incredibly fortunate” to be able to take time out “when others can’t”, and said he wanted to thank his “amazing” family, friends, team, medical professionals “and all of you who’ve been so supportive every step of the way through the good times and even more so during this past year when I’ve needed it more than ever”.
Capaldi had gigs and festival appearances in Australia, Asia and Europe planned throughout the year, including a performance in Zurich, Switzerland, on Wednesday.
He apologised to those with tickets to all his shows, saying he was “incredibly sorry” but needs “to feel well to perform at the standard you all deserve”.
Capaldi finished by saying: “Playing for you every night is all I’ve ever dreamed of so this has been the most difficult decision of my life. I’ll be back as soon as I possibly can. All my love, always, Lewis.”
The singer recently admitted on an Apple Music show that his mental health issues were a “direct symptom” of his work, and shared his struggle with Tourette’s in the Netflix documentary, Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now.
He said “a few panic attacks” and his Tourette’s diagnosis were worth the trade-off for a pop star’s life, but admitted he could give up music if his mental health worsened.
Read more:
Understanding Tourette’s
Elton John closes Glastonbury with history-making goodbye
The Glastonbury moments you might have missed
Capaldi recently shared his story in the How I’m Feeling Now documentary. Pic: Netflix
On stage at Glastonbury on Saturday, the Scottish star admitted he was having voice issues in the run-up to performing his chart-topping ballad Someone You Loved.
“I’m going to be honest everybody, but I’m starting to lose my voice up here, but we’re going to keep going and we’re going to go until the end,” he told the crowd. “I just need you all to sing with me as loud as you can if that’s okay?”
As he struggled to hit the notes, the huge audience roused to help him by singing back as he watched on, clearly emotional.
Artists who have cancelled events due to health issues
Capaldi joins a growing list of stars prioritising their mental and physical health over shows and performances. Earlier this year, Justin Bieber cancelled the remainder of his world tour following ongoing health issues, and also called off shows in 2017 to focus on his mental health.
Last year, Shawn Mendes axed shows in the UK, North America and Europe, telling fans he had been advised by health professionals, and Demi Lovato is another star who has put off shows and spoken about her mental health struggles.
Selena Gomez cancelled shows in 2016 due to anxiety and depression, while at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, star US gymnast Simone Biles pulled out of the team event due to concerns for her mental health.
Angelina Jolie says although she appreciates being an artist, she would prefer for her legacy to be “a good mother” and to be known for her “belief in equality and human rights”.
The Oscar-winning actress stars as Maria Callas in the new Pablo Larrain film about the opera singer’s life.
Pic: StudioCanal
She has called Maria “the hardest” and “most challenging” role she has had in her career and put months of preparation into immersing herself into the world of opera.
Jolie, who recently reached a divorce settlement with actor Brad Pitt, told Sky News: “To be very candid, it was the therapy I didn’t realise I needed. I had no idea how much I was holding in and not letting out.
“So, the challenge wasn’t the technical [side of opera], it was an emotional experience to find my voice, to be in my body, to express. You have to give every single part of yourself.”
The biopic combines the voice of the Maleficent actress with recordings of Maria Callas.
Jolie believes it “would be a crime to not have [Callas’] voice through this because, in many ways, she is very present in this film”.
Who was Maria Callas?
Born in New York in 1923, Maria Callas was the daughter of Greek immigrants who moved back to Athens at the age of 13 with her mother and sister.
After enrolling at the Athens Conservatory, she made her professional debut at 17 and went on to become one of the most famous faces of opera, travelling around the world and performing at Covent Garden in London, The Met in New York and La Scala in Milan.
Callas’s final operatic performance took place at Covent Garden in 1965 when she was 41 but she continued to work conducting master classes at Juilliard School, doing concert tours and starring in the 1969 film Medea.
Written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, Maria focuses on the artist’s final years in the 1970s when she moved to Paris and disappeared from public view.
She died on 16 September 1977 at the age of 53.
Pic: StudioCanal
Jolie on changing motivations as an actor
Maria follows the life of an artist fully consumed by the art she creates and even remarks that “happiness never developed a beautiful melody”.
Reflecting on her own life in the spotlight, Jolie said she noticed her own career motivations change over the years.
“There’s this kind of study of being human that we do when we create, and we communicate with an audience because our work is not in isolation – it’s a connection.
“I think when I was younger, I had different questions about being human and different feelings and now as I’ve gotten older, I understand some things and now I have different questions.
“It’s a matter of life, right? And so maybe that’s interesting that this now is a character really contemplating death and really contemplating the toll of certain things in life that I, of course, couldn’t have understood in my 20s”.
Jolie at the New York Film Festival in September with three of her children (L-R) Pax, Zahara and Maddox. Pic: AP
A family affair
Two of Jolie’s children, Maddox and Pax, took on production assistant roles during the filming of Maria and witnessed their mother perform opera for the first time in public.
She says the film allowed them to create new experiences together and for her children to see her approach to playing a difficult role.
“Everyone in my home, we all give each other space to be who we are and we’re all different.
“I’m the mom, but I’m also an artist and a person and so my family has been very kind and gives me their understanding. They make fun of me, and they support me and just as you’d hope it would be.”
She adds: “When you play somebody who is dealing with so much pain, it’s very important to come home to some kindness.”
Maria is in cinemas now.
Tom Holland’s dad has confirmed his son’s engagement to Zendaya – revealing how the 28-year-old meticulously planned the proposal.
Zendaya, also 28, sparked engagement rumours when she attended last Sunday’s Golden Globes wearing a sparkling diamond on her ring finger.
Neither star has publicly addressed the rumours but Tom’s comedian father, Dominic Holland, has now confirmed the pair are set to wed.
He wrote in a post on his Patreon account: “Tom, as you know by now was very incredibly well prepared. He had purchased a ring.
“He had spoken with her father and gained permission to propose to his daughter.”
“Tom had everything planned out… When, where, how, what to say, what to wear,” he added.
Zendaya arrived at the Golden Globes with a noticeable piece of new jewellery. Pic: Invision/AP
Dominic also noted that while most men worry about being able to afford an engagement ring, he suspects his actor son was “more concerned with the stone, its size and clarity, its housing, which jeweller”.
Tom and Zendaya met on the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2016, when they played the titular hero and his love interest MJ, respectively. Their romance was confirmed in 2021.
In his post, Tom’s father admitted fears over whether being in the spotlight could put a strain on the couple’s relationship.
He wrote: “I do fret that their combined stardom will amplify their spotlight and the commensurate demands on them and yet they continually confound me by handling everything with aplomb.”
“And even though show business is a messy place for relationships and particularly so for famous couples as they crash and burn in public and are too numerous to mention […] yet somehow right at the same time, I am completely confident they will make a successful union.”
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Zendaya rose to fame after landing a role in Disney sitcom Shake It Up, and became a household name after starring in Euphoria.
Holland – who has starred in three Spider-Man films opposite his now-fiancée – made his stage debut in Billy Elliot the Musical in 2008.
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