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Postponements & Cancellations: REO Speedwagon, Earl Sweatshirt
– Kevin Cronin
Captured in action during REO SpeedwagonJohn Davisson
REO Speedwagon postpones several dates so that singer / guitarist Kevin Cronin can undergo a procedure … A death in the family causes Earl Sweatshirt to pull out of The xx’s tour of Australia.
Calling it a “routine procedure” that can be done by a “highly qualified robotic surgeon” based at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Hospital, REO Speedwagon’s Kevin Cronin is asking “the greatest fans in rock ’n’ roll” to “change their plans” regarding the band’s scheduled January-February dates. Nixed gigs include a Jan. 24 show at Coronado Performing Arts Center in Rockford, Ill., Jan. 26-27 at Island Resort & Casino in Harris, Mich., and Verizon Wireless Center Feb. 22.
“My doctor says I’ll be good as new,” Cronin told fans via the band’s Facebook page. “All I can do is ask for your understanding and I truly appreciate your support. The new dates will be announced as soon as possible.”
REO Speedwagon’s next scheduled show is March 11 at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wis. As in 2017 REO will team on several dates with Styx, beginning March 13. Former Eagle Don Felder joins the tour one day later in Bismarck, N.D. Per results submitted to Pollstar’s incredibly talented Box Office division, last year’s package tour averaged $253,375 nightly to achieve a total U.S. gross of $6,841.112.
The death of his father has forced American rapper / producer
Sweatshirt, who’s real name is Thebe Neruda Kgositsile, is the son of South African poet Keorapetse William Kgositsile, who passed away Jan. 3. Selected as South Africa’s poet laureate in 2006, the elder Kgositsile was a member of the African National Congress during the 1960s and’ 70s, although he spent many years living in exile in the U.S.
Scott Legato / RockStarProPhotography.com – Earl Sweatshirt
St. Andrews Hall, Detroit, Mich.