Queens of the Stone Age cancels remainder of 2024 shows due to Josh Homme’s illness
Queens of the Stone Age has canceled the remainder of its 2024 shows due to lead singer Josh Homme’s ongoing medical issues.
“QOTSA regret to announce the cancellation and/or postponement of all remaining 2024 shows,” the band said in an update posted Friday on social media. “Josh has been given no choice but to prioritize his health and to receive essential medical care through the year.”
Shows in Boston, Cincinnati and Madison, Wisc., have been postponed to next year. The band’s festival appearances — including fall sets at Soundside Music Festival, Mempho Music Festival and Corona Capital Festival in Mexico City — have been canceled altogether. Ticket holders for QOTSA shows will be contacted by point of purchase with further information about new dates, and festival ticket holders were advised to visit the specific event sites for updated information.
A representative for the band declined to comment further Friday.
Homme, 51, who grew up in Palm Desert and started his music career there, was diagnosed with cancer in 2022 but said he had recovered after undergoing surgery.
The band paused its European tour in early July so that the singer could immediately return to the U.S. for emergency surgery. It’s unclear if the surgery was related to his cancer diagnosis, because no specifics about the procedure were given.
Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2022, bows out of eight shows in Europe so he can get emergency surgery in the U.S.
“Every effort was made to push through and play for you, but it is no longer an option to continue,” the alt-rock band said at the time in a post on social media, confirming the cancellation of eight shows over the summer.
The band — whose other members are guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen, bassist Michael Shuman, keyboardist Dean Fertita and drummer Jon Theodore — canceled its festival appearances in France and Slovakia because of the singer-guitarist’s departure. The group’s shows in Germany, Austria, Romania, Croatia and Greece were also canceled.
The Queens of the Stone Age frontman has recently survived cancer, the deaths of close friends and a protracted custody battle. The result? ‘A flood of emotion.’
About a week before that announcement, the “No One Knows” and “The Way You Used to Do” band canceled its appearance at Italy’s AMA Festival “due to illness,” although it did not indicate in that announcement who had fallen ill.
But on Friday, in its newest statement, the band said, “Josh and the QOTSA family are so thankful for your support and the time we were able to spend together over the last year. Hope to see you all again in 2025.”
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