Most rockstars from the 60s, 70s and 80s have ages ranging from 60 to 80 years old. Therefore, they are on the risk group. For people that have 60 years of age and over, the Coronavirus can be more serious.
Dozens of tours were postponed to to guarantee the safety of fans, since agglomerations are currently being banned in many countries and also to guarantee the safety of musicians, who are in the risk group. Kiss, for example, canceled meet and greets with fans and shortly afterwards postponed the last three shows of the current part of their tour.
The China’s Center for Disease Control reported that researchers looked at the first 72,314 patients with confirmed or suspected Covid-19. They discovered a huge variation in the case fatality rate by age group. So, the disease gets deadlier according to the age.
World Health Organization and governments around the world have advised that older people should stay at home and isolate themselves socially, avoiding contact with other people, including family to reduce risk.
Rockstars and Coronavirus
Whitesnake
Whitesnake, that has vocalist David Coverdale (68 years) and drummer Tommy Aldridge (69 years) postponed their tour in Japan.
“We are sorry to announce that the Whitesnake tour in Japan, scheduled for March, was inevitably postponed due to the continued threat of the coronavirus.” said David Coverdale‘s band in a post on Twitter. “We deeply regret all the parties involved. Especially the customers who bought tickets and were looking forward to Whitesnake’s shows.”
Coverdale even published a selfie in a plane wearing a mask to protect himself:
Sammy Hagar
Sammy Hagar and The Circle would play for the first time in South America in March. Even though the situation there is not as big as in Asia, Europe and North America yet, he decided to cancel the shows to guarantee the safety of fans and the band. All of the members are in the risk group or close, singer and guitarist Sammy Hagar (72 years), bassist Michael Anthony (65 years), drummer Jason Bonham (53 years) and guitarist Vic Johnson (56 years).
Hagar posted a video, apologizing for the cancelation:
Kiss
First, Kiss canceled the meet and greet’s with the band to avoid the contact with the public directly. After that, it was announced the postponement of their 3 remaining North American shows of this leg of their farewell tour. The band members are all in the risk group: guitarist and singer Paul Stanley (68 years), bassist and singer Gene Simmons (70 years), Eric Singer (61 years) and Tommy Thayer (59 years).
The band said:
“The final three shows of the spring leg of the KISS #EndOfTheRoad Tour are being rescheduled out of an abundance of caution.”
“Tulsa, OK will now be Sunday, October 4th at BOK Center; Biloxi, MS will now be Tuesday, October 6th at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum; and Lafayette, LA will now be Wednesday, October 7th at Cajundome. Tickets will be honoured on the new date. The Fall leg of the tour remains unchanged. The band looks forward to seeing the fans very soon.”
The Who
The Who also postponed their United Kingdom tour. Europe is being considered the new epicenter of the epidemic in the world after China cases are decreasing. The band formed by singer Roger Daltrey (76 years), guitarist Pete Townshend (74 years) and other younger musicians would promote their latest album Who.
Singer Roger Daltrey said:
“Definitely happen and it may be the last time we do a tour of this type, so keep those tickets, as the shows will be fantastic.”
Pete Townshend added:
“We haven’t reached this decision easily, but given the concerns about public gatherings, we couldn’t go ahead.”
Alice Cooper
The shock rock god, Alice Cooper (72 years) also had to postpone his North American Tour. The first trek would happen from March 31 to April 22. The shows will now happen in the fall.
He said:
“We are regretfully postponing our Spring 2020 headline North American tour from March 31 through April 22. The tour is being rescheduled for Fall 2020 and the new schedule will be announced as soon as possible.”
“Due to the current concerns regarding COVID-19, the health and safety of our fans, local venue staffs, as well as the health and safety of our band and crew, is of utmost priority. Information regarding previously purchased tickets and VIP packages will be available soon at alicecooper.com; it is recommended that those who have tickets should retain them, as they may be valid for the re-scheduled shows. Let’s get through this together and resume rocking later in the year.”
Many other bands like Yes, Kansas, Styx, Rage Against the Machine, Lynyrd Skynyrd are also postponing their tour dates to guarantee the safety of everyone.