Darius Rucker ends New Jersey concert after three songs. ‘I can’t sing anymore’
They say there’s a first time for everything — even for celebrities like Darius Rucker.
The 59-year-old country music star, who first rose to fame as the lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish, was performing at the Hard Rock Casino in Atlantic City on Saturday, July 12, when things went south.
“Y’all, I can’t sing anymore,” Rucker said to the crowd early in his performance, according to PhillyBurbs.com.
“I will play one more song. I promise you we’re going to figure this out,” he added, per the outlet. “This (has) never happened. I physically can’t sing… I will make this up to you.”
Rucker’s apology came while performing just his third song of the night.
His voice had been cracking throughout the performance and he was audibly struggling to get the words out to some of his biggest hits, including “Wagon Wheel” — which he performed before exiting the stage.
“You guys, I can’t do it,” he said to the crowd in a TikTok video posted by a fan who attended the concert.
As he attempted to push through it, the crowd joined in and helped him get through the song.
“The crowd singing to Darius Rucker after he said he couldn’t ... finish the concert was something magical,” the fan wrote in the caption of the video.
“Poor guy. It happens. Hope he feels better soon,” another fan wrote in the comment section.
According to the New York Post, Rucker took to his Instagram Stories after the show to apologize and confirm that fans would receive a full refund since rescheduling wasn’t an option.
“I feel awful, and I’m so sorry — I have never lost my voice in all my years of performing,” Rucker wrote on Sunday, July 13, per the outlet.
“We looked at every option to reschedule, but unfortunately, it’s just not possible this year, so we’re issuing full refunds,” he added.
Rucker’s performance was just the third show of his 45-date international tour, which began on July 10.
His next two shows are at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, on July 19 and the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa on July 20, according to the singer’s website.
Rucker then has 25 more shows in the United States before heading to the United Kingdom on Sept. 26 for a show in London, followed by five more performances in the UK.
He’ll then return to the U.S. for two shows in South Carolina in October before starting an eight-show leg in Canada and ending the tour in Naples, Florida, on Dec. 13.
