Barry Manilow has postponed his upcoming arena tour following recent cancer surgery.
In December, the musician shared that he would be having surgery to remove a “cancerous spot” found on his lung. At the time, Manilow said that he had been suffering from bronchitis for several weeks, and the cancer was caught out of “pure luck” on a precautionary MRI scan. He confirmed the cancer had been caught early enough for him not to need chemotherapy or radiation.
Then, in January, he issued a positive update, saying he was feeling “better” after the surgery, but later cancelled his planned Valentine’s weekend concerts.
Now, the musician has shared he will be postponing his planned 2026 farewell arena tour after a “very depressing visit” to his surgeon.
In a statement shared to Instagram yesterday (February 20), he said that, despite using the treadmill three times a day, he still couldn’t sing more than three songs in a row before having to stop.
He told fans that his surgeon had said: “Barry, you won’t be ready to do a 90 minute show. Your lungs aren’t ready yet. You’re in great shape considering what you’ve been through, but your body isn’t ready. You shouldn’t do the first Arena shows. You won’t make it through.”
Manilow added that while “deep down” he wanted to go back on stage, his “body knew what my heart didn’t want to admit: I wasn’t ready.”
The cancelled shows are those in the first batch, running from February 27 to March 17. He explained that he still plans to perform the Las Vegas shows at the “very end of March” and the second batch of concerts at the beginning of April.
“I’m SO, SO sorry I have to reschedule some of these first Arena shows. Again!” the singer wrote, before promising, “But when I do come back, I will COME BACK!!!”
Manilow then thanked fans for their support and wrote, “The doctor said that my body had been through hell and that it needed time to heal. So, I’m going back to healing. All my love and gratitude, B.”
Prior to these shows, Manilow had been playing his final US arena tour. He also played what were billed as his final UK dates last year, including a residency at the London Palladium.
When announcing these shows, he wrote: “In 1978, The London Palladium is where I began my love affair with the British public. These shows will be my last full concerts in Britain and I wanted to end where I began – at the London Palladium.”
