Rod Stewart’s San Diego concert at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre was canceled Friday night 45 minutes before the scheduled 7:30 p.m. start after the singer was diagnosed with an acute upper respiratory infection that resulted in laryngitis, organizers said.
Live Nation and Stewart’s team said the 81-year-old was at the venue in Chula Vista but was unable to take to the stage; a representative said Stewart’s physician had been consulted, he was given a few rounds of steroids and treatment in hopes of performing, but the steroids “kicked in too late for the show.”
Stewart posted an apology to fans, writing, “I'm very disappointed and sincerely apologise for any inconvenience to my fans.” He added, “I did everything I could to make the show happen tonight, but unfortunately it just wasn't possible. I will do my utmost to reschedule.” The canceled stop was part of Stewart’s One Last Time farewell tour.
The timing amplified the disruption. The cancellation came on a night when thousands of ticket holders had already arrived at the amphitheatre for a 7:30 p.m. performance; pulling the plug 45 minutes before showtime left little time for immediate remedies or notification and forced many fans to make last-minute plans to leave or seek refunds.
Medical context underlines the conservatism. Laryngitis typically takes at least one week to recover from and can last up to three weeks, and Stewart had already canceled two Las Vegas shows in May while recovering from a sinus infection. The performer’s team emphasized those medical realities when explaining the decision to call off the San Diego date.
The sequence after the cancellation introduced a sharp contrast. On Saturday morning Stewart posted an Instagram video from a private jet with his sons Aidan and Alastair in which he spoke and briefly sang without an audible sign of laryngitis. In the clip he said, “Here we are flying off to Boston to see Scotland in the World Cup,” and elsewhere declared he was “feeling much better” even as earlier messages stressed that “my voice is not.”
That difference — a Friday-night diagnosis of no voice and a Saturday-morning video in which he speaks and sings — created immediate questions among fans about how ill he had been and whether the show might have gone ahead. Stewart’s representative, however, maintained that medical advice at the venue and the delayed effect of treatment made performing impossible that night.
The practical next step is unresolved. Stewart said he hoped to reschedule the San Diego show, but no new date has been announced. His next confirmed performance remains booked for June 15 in Colorado, leaving fans and promoters to wait for an update on a replacement date and any ticketing arrangements.
