Kings of Leon have cancelled all of their forthcoming UK and European shows after frontman Caleb Followill injured his foot in a “freak accident”.
In a statement, the group said Followill had a serious injury “shattering his heel” that wouldn’t allow him to travel or perform.
“The anticipated recovery process is expected to take 8 weeks, under strict guidance of expert orthopedic specialists. The band regrets to report that they will need to cancel all upcoming UK and European festival headline shows in June and July of this year.”
In a video posted on the group’s Instagram page, Followill shared that he needed “emergency surgery” after he broke his foot while playing with his kids.
The musician shares two children, daughter Dixie, 12, and son Winston, 6, with his wife, model Lily Aldridge.
“Hello to everyone out there, especially our European fans that are preparing to come see us this summer. Unfortunately, I regret to inform you that those shows will have to be cancelled due to a freak accident that happened the other day. Broke my foot pretty bad just playing with my kids,” he said in the video on Wednesday.
“It’s pretty gnarly. I'll spare all the details, but we're fortunate enough to have some great doctors here in Nashville that gave me emergency surgery. And I’m on the mend, but they’ve told me that I can’t be on my feet or traveling or anything for the next eight weeks or so. And that’s a big bummer, man. We were so excited. We’ve been preparing for this tour for a long time.”
The American band was scheduled to kick off the European leg of their tour in Paris on 10 June, including stops in Spain, Germany, Italy and ending in Portugal on 12 July. They were also set to perform at the Blackweir Fields in Cardiff and the Lytham Festival in Lancashire.
Blackweir Fields and the Lytham Festival said they would refund the ticketholders.
The Kings of Leon website still shows their slots performing at the Victorious Festival in Portsmouth and Come Together Festival in Newcastle in August.
Followill said in the video that the rock group, which also consists of his brothers Nathan and Jared Followill and cousin Matthew Followill, was planning to debut some new songs on this run.
“We had a lot of exciting things planned. And now we're just gonna have to pivot and find a new way to continue the work that we've started,” he said.
“I'm very excited when we do get to show you the stuff that we're doing. And in the meantime, we're gonna do whatever work we can while I have these limitations. But exciting stuff is coming.”
The Grammy winners released their last album, Can We Please Have Fun, in May last year. The Independent’s Helen Brown described the album as “surprisingly fresh and full of energy” in a four-star review.
“The tunes are sparkier, tempos more varied and the sonic textures cheerier, as though the band were given a clean shave and a hot lemon-scented towel. So when frontman Caleb Followill asks on the spritely ‘Mustang’ where you are ‘a Mustang or a kitty?’ it’s a lively challenge and not a slurred recrimination. It seems as though he wants to be both: powerful and playful.”
Who is Arijit Singh? Bollywood star set to make history headlining UK stadium show
UK band robbed at gunpoint on US tour say it is ‘the greatest country in the world’
Classic rock guitarist Rick Derringer of ‘Hang On Sloopy’ fame dies aged 77
Grimes pulls out of Pride performance citing ‘family issues’
Zak Starkey says he was ‘retired’, not ‘fired’, from The Who as new drummer announced
