The Weeknd cancels 2022 concert at UBS Arena
The Weeknd is canceling his arena tour, including a stop at Elmont's new UBS Arena, in favor of an upcoming stadium tour next summer. Above, the Canadian artist performs at the Pepsi Super Bowl LV Half Time Show in Tampa, Fla., on Feb. 7, 2021. Credit: Getty Images / Mike Ehrmann
Call it a rough start, but UBS Arena’s first concert booking has just been removed from its calendar. The yet-to-open Belmont Park venue, located in Elmont, has canceled The Weeknd’s April 7, 2022 gig. Tickets went on sale on Feb. 8 after the pop star’s Super Bowl LV halftime show in Tampa, Florida.
The concert is not canceled due to the pandemic but rather because the Grammy winner wants to move his entire "After Hours World Tour" out of arenas and into stadiums, pushing the trek to the summer of 2022.
"Due to constraints of arenas and the demand for more shows I want to do something bigger and special for you which requires stadiums," said The Weeknd in a statement on social media. "Current tickets will be refunded automatically and all ticket holders will be given priority to buy tickets for the stadium shows when they go on sale. New dates forthcoming."
The tour is being rebranded the "After Hours Til Dawn Stadium Tour" and plans to go global, hitting not only North America, but Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, South America and the Middle East as well.
The new tour title is apparently a reference to a forthcoming album. In fact, The Weeknd gave his fans a taste when he dropped a new song, "Take My Breath," in August.
"If the last record is the after hours of the night then the dawn is coming," the Canadian artist told Variety in May. Apparently the singer has been quite busy during the pandemic because he announced on Twitter this spring, "made so much magic in the small quarantined room … now just piecing it all together … it’s so beautiful."
The Weeknd’s last studio album, "After Hours," was released in 2020, hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts and went double platinum spawning such hits as "Heartless," "Blinding Lights" and "Save Your Tears." Then in early 2021, the singer put out a new compilation, "The Highlights" featuring his favorite songs from his four-album catalog.
Ticket holders to The Weeknd’s UBS Arena show can go to www.ticketmaster.com/the-weeknd-belmont-park-long-island-new-york-04-07-2022/event/30005A41D3C8088E for refund information.
David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.
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