Santigold Cancels North American Tour
Santigold has canceled her forthcoming Holified tour. The singer-songwriter took to her official website on Monday (Sept. 26) to share the news, noting that she was “both sad and proud” to do so. She addressed her mental health, the ever-changing music industry, and the harsh realities of being a touring artist during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“After sitting idle (not being able to do shows) for the past couple of years, many of us, like everyone else, earning no or little income during that time, every musician that could, rushed back out immediately when it was deemed safe to do shows,” the “Shake” singer, 46, expressed.
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“We were met with the height of inflation – gas, tour buses, hotels, and flight costs skyrocketed,” she continued. “Many of our tried-and-true venues unavailable due to a flooded market of artists trying to book shows in the same cities, and positive test results constantly halting schedules with devastating financial consequences.”
In addition to the financial ramifications of COVID, Santigold also cited other ways the past few years have caused strain. “All of that on top of the already-tapped mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional resources of just having made it through the past few years. Some of us are finding ourselves simply unable to make it work.”
Santigold concluded her letter by stating that she “will not continue to sacrifice myself for an industry that has become unsustainable” and “uninterested in the welfare of the artists it is built upon.”
The Holified tour was supposed to kick off to support her latest album, Spirituals, released on Sept. 9. Read Santigold’s full letter below.