Darren Hayes has shared a lengthy statement about the realities of touring after cancelling his upcoming Gold Coast show.
The pop star’s ‘Do You Remember?’ tour of his home country commences in late January, with stops in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Brisbane. The final show at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, however, is no more after not enough tickets were sold.
In a heartfelt message to his fans, Hayes opened up about the challenges of touring post-pandemic. “As many of you know, since Covid-19 the live concert industry has been incredibly challenged and touring has become a financial and logistical nightmare for many musicians,” he wrote.
“Although my team and I agonised over the best way to try to make the numbers work, it became clear that although my promoter was ambitious in booking me into so many venues and large spaces, we simply hadn’t sold enough tickets overall to break even and that was putting the entire Australian leg of the tour in jeopardy unless we made some changes.”
Hayes explained that it was even suggested to him to cancel the entire tour, but that he “refused to do that.” “People are flying in from all over the world to come to this tour and I couldn’t live with myself if I caused that kind of chaos to their lives,” he noted.
“Usually when something like this happens, an artist will put out a polite, vague excuse like ‘scheduling conflicts’ or ‘unforeseen circumstances’ but I have too much respect for you to do that. I’ve always been truthful and this is the reality of the music industry in 2022.”
“It’s a strange time to be touring. Covid seems to have affected touring markets (in) different ways. In the UK we had to add six more shows. Similarly in the USA, I’m about to add 4 more dates. For whatever reason this is the situation in Australia for many artists and we all have to evolve and adapt to these changing times. Hayes added that Gold Coast ticket holders will be contacted directly by Ticketek about a refund.
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His message concluded: “I love you folks – it pains me to have to disappoint anyone, especially those in my home state, but I hope you know we are working night and day to put on the best possible show. Bringing this music to you, live, after being away so long, is a dream come true and a dream worth fighting for.”
If you’re able to support one of Australia’s best singer-songwriters, tickets for Hayes’ other tour shows are on sale here. It’s his first tour in his home country in over a decade, and will be both a celebration of his new solo album, Homosexual, and 25 years of Savage Garden. He’ll also be joined by 90s pop favourites Bachelor Girl.
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