Frank Ocean Tears Vocal Cord, Cancels Australian Tour

Frank Ocean suffered a tear to a vocal cord on the opening night of his sold-out Australian tour, forcing the singer to cancel his remaining shows in the country.

Ocean, a rising R&B star, launched his first-ever Australian tour on Thursday night in Melbourne. However, it appeared the show would be his last in the land Down Under, at least for now.

Ocean’s Friday night show was canceled, along with two next week in Sydney, reports Billboard. Tour promoter Live Nation made the announcement on Thursday.

The company released a statement, explaining that Frank Ocean sought medical advice after the inaugural concert due to throat issues he experienced during the show. The promoter added:

“It has subsequently been confirmed that Frank has suffered a small tear to one of his vocal cords and has received medical advice that he must rest his voice.”

Unfortunately, that means that Frank Ocean’s vocal cord tear will keep him from playing at Splendour in the Grass on Sunday, which he built his Australian mini-tour around. The festival is already underway, and a spokesperson commented that Ocean’s cancellation is “devastating news for the event.”

An issue was first suspected on Thursday night when Frank Ocean reportedly closed the show without an encore, despite his fans’ requests, notes AU News. Instead, he apparently told the crowd, “I don’t wanna speak much tonight but I do wanna thank you guys.” He also stated at one point that he was sick.

Splendour’s Paul Piticco and Jessica Ducrou added of Ocean’s cancellation, “We are totally gutted that Frank can’t make it and we know that many of our patrons will be just as disappointed as we are.” However, it’s likely the festival’s organizers understand that Frank Ocean needs to rest.

The Grammy winner was also apparently off-key during his performance Thursday night. Frank Ocean is not the first singer, and likely won’t be the last, to suffer a vocal cord tear. However, the tear will heal, as long as the R&B singer rests his voice.

[Image via Featureflash / Shutterstock.com]