Elton John's been on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour since September of 2018 (remember those days? Simpler times.) He's been playing all across the world and his multi-year schedule of concert dates was set to roll through 2020.
Now, with COVID-19 and the pandemic wreaking havoc with concert tours, Elton said in a release he's had to lay off members of his band, including long-serving guitarist Davey Johnstone and drummer Nigel Olsson, until the future becomes clearer on when concerts can take place again.
John, whose estimated net worth hovers around $445 million, has also reportedly laid off a number of staff members at this $25 million house in Atlanta.
Elton's original Milwaukee tour date was set for April, 2019 and was postponed until October, where he played a show at Fiserv Forum that the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel deemed #1 on their list of the Best Milwaukee Concerts of 2019. A second show was announced for April 28, 2020, but was postponed due to COVID-19. The earliest rescheduled date would be sometime in 2021. And of course, the band has to come back first.
The cancelled or postponed Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour dates have caused about $75 million in financial losses, leading to the layoffs.