Award-winning singer and LGBTQ+ icon Madonna has been forced to postpone her highly anticipated Celebration Tour after the artist was found unresponsive and rushed to the ICU this weekend. 

News of the singer’s condition was reported by her manager, Guy Oseary, on social media Wednesday, June 28. Oseary explained that Madonna, 64, had spent several days in an Intensive Care Unit with a “serious bacterial infection”. 

“On Saturday June 24, Madonna developed a serious bacterial infection which led to a several day stay in the ICU,” said Oseary in an Instagram post.

It has since been confirmed that the singer has been discharged from hospital and is recovering at home.

While Oseary assured fans that the performer is expected to make a “full recovery”, he also shared that she needs to “pause all commitments,” including her highly anticipated Celebration Tour, in order to focus on her health. 

Oseary confirmed, however, that the tour has only been postponed, and not cancelled outright, announcing that Madonna’s team would be working to reschedule any affected dates as soon as possible. 

“We will share more details with you as soon as we have them, including a new start date for the tour and for rescheduled shows,” Oseary said.

The decline of Madonna’s health comes after weeks of “strenuously rehearsing” for her upcoming tour. 

 

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According to an interview with the Daily Mail, however, Madonna’s condition on Saturday was so severe that her family was unsure the singer would pull through. 

“For the past couple of days, no one really knew which direction this was going to turn, and her family was preparing for the worst,” reported an unnamed family member.

“Everyone believed that we may lose her and that has been the reality of the situation.”

The relative went on to say that the health scare came as a serious wake-up call for the 64-year-old artist, who, according to her family, has “not been living as healthy a life as she should be for her age”.

“She thinks that she is still young when, in fact, she is not,” they added. “She also believes that she is invincible.”

According to a report published by Page Six, Madonna was rushed to a New York City hospital on Saturday after being found unresponsive. The star was subsequently intubated for a period of time but has since regained consciousness and returned to her New York residence in a private ambulance as reported on June 29.

“She had been putting in 12-hour days,” said an insider with close ties to Madonna’s tour production. “She was strenuously rehearsing and putting in the work.”

Reports also suggest that Madonna’s daughter, Lourdes Leon, was by her side throughout the sudden health crisis. 

While the singer is on the mend, several of the shows on her world tour will have to be rescheduled as a result of the episode. 

Madonna announced her Celebration Tour earlier in 2023, marking 40 years since the ‘Material Girl’ singer started her music career. 

When first announced, Variety reported that the tour, despite making stops in 43 cities across the globe, would specifically “pay respect to the city of New York, where [Madonna’s] career in music began.”

Additional US tour locations included shows in Detroit, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles. Following the North American leg of her tour, Madonna then planned to travel to Europe to perform for adoring fans in London, Stockholm, Barcelona, Paris and more. 

The Celebration Tour was due to kick off in Vancouver, Canada, on July 15, with drag comedian, singer and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 8, Bob the Drag Queen, scheduled to join Madonna as a supporting act. 

Bob spoke about joining the tour in an interview with Billboard in February, where she said, “You ever think about how lucky you are to be alive at the same time as someone else? We get to be alive at the same time as Madonna.”

The queen has yet to comment on the announcement of Madonna’s health or on the postponement of the Celebration Tour.