The Black Keys break silence after cancelled arena tour and management split: “We got fucked”
The Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney has broken his silence after the band cancelled their upcoming North American arena tour amid low ticket sales.
The mammoth tour, scheduled to begin in September, was set to visit 31 major cities, with ticket prices ranging from $100 to $300 before including Ticketmaster fees. Before the listings disappeared from their website, screenshots from Ticketmaster spread on social media which showed the vast number of seats still available for the shows.
After links to buy tickets vanished, a statement was issued on behalf of the band, which reassured fans that Carney and Dan Auerbach were “alive and well” despite cancelling the plotted tour.
The statement then discussed their recent trip to the United Kingdom and Europe, which included three shows at London’s Brixton Academy, which they claimed made them reassess plans for their North American tour. They explained, “We have decided to make some changes to the North American leg of the ‘International Players Tour’ that will enable us to offer a similarly exciting, intimate experience for both fans and the band, and will be announcing a revised set of dates shortly.”
Fans who purchased tickets have been given full refunds, and will also be at the front of the line for the rescheduled dates, which are still yet to be announced.
Last week, it emerged The Black Keys had recently fired their managers, Irving Azoff and Steve Moir following the tour debacle. A statement from Azoff’s representative claimed to the New York Times that it was an “amicable parting”.
While The Black Keys stayed silent on news of the split from their management, Carney took to his X account on June 10th to say, “We got fucked. I’ll let you all know how so it doesn’t happen to you. Stay tuned.”
Although the drummer’s comment is vague, it shows there is no love lost between Carney and The Black Keys’ former management.
The cancelled tour was set to celebrate the release of the duo’s most-recent album, Ohio Players, which arrived earlier this year. It marked their lowest-charting album since 2006, peaking at 26th in the United States, whereas, their last six records all landed in the top ten upon release. In the United Kingdom, it was also their first album to not secure a top ten finish since 2010’s Brothers.
Meanwhile, Auerbach recently contributed to the lost Johnny Cash song, ‘Spotlight’, which was released last week. The track was initially recorded by Cash in 1993, and Auerbach was recruited by the late singer-songwriter’s son, John Carter Cash, to play guitar on the song.
Auerbach described it as “the thrill of a lifetime to be able to play guitar on a Johnny Cash song.” The Black Keys frontman continued: “Hearing his voice through the speakers in my studio sent chills down my spine. I can’t thank John Carter and Fergie enough for including me.”
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.