Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O unable to perform at Daisy Chain Fields due to “family emergency”

Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O has revealed that a “family emergency” prevented her from performing at Olivia Rodrigo’s inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival.

The one-day event took place at Great Park in Irvine, California yesterday (August 29), with O billed as one of three special guests alongside Stevie Nicks and Sarah McLachlan.

In a statement shared on Instagram today (August 30), O explained her absence and confirmed that she had remained with her family on the East Coast.

“I was unable to perform at Daisy Chain due to a family emergency,” she wrote. “Very sad to miss such a herstoric music event, but I’m where I’m most needed, with family back east.

“So much gratitude to Olivia for her advocacy for women, by women, who totally rock. Much ❤️ KO.”

Rodrigo ultimately brought out McLachlan, Alanis Morissette and Nicks during her closing headline set.

McLachlan joined her for ‘Building A Mystery’ and ‘Angel’, with the latter dedicated to Dolly Parton following the country star’s death earlier this week. Morissette appeared for ‘Ironic’, before Nicks and Rodrigo closed the show with a rendition of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Landslide’.

The all-female Daisy Chain Fields bill also featured Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, Bikini Kill, The Breeders, Garbage, Santigold, Rachel Chinouriri and Die Spitz.

Devon Again was added to the line-up after KATSEYE withdrew shortly before the festival, following Megan Skiendiel spraining her ankle during rehearsals for the group’s forthcoming tour.

All participating artists waived their performance fees, with the festival’s net proceeds supporting organisations that advocate for women and girls. Daisy Chain Fields had raised $10million for 10 non-profit groups before the event, with Melinda French Gates subsequently matching the sum and bringing the total to $20million.

Karen O, meanwhile, recently reunited with The Avalanches for the collaborative single ‘Blue Shadows’. The track followed her previous appearance on ‘Dial D For Devotion’, taken from the Australian group’s 2020 album ‘We Will Always Love You’.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs last toured in 2025, when their ‘Hidden In Pieces’ theatre shows saw them revisit rarities and favourites with new arrangements to mark their 25th anniversary.

Their latest album, ‘Cool It Down’, arrived in 2022 and marked their first full-length release in nine years.

In a four-star review, NME wrote: “‘Cool It Down’ is a creative testament to how refreshing it can be for bands to look forward instead of backwards, and as O said while describing the album’s opening track, ‘it’s galvanizing, and there’s hope there’.”