Donald Glover, who performs under the name Childish Gambino, revealed while performing in Los Angeles Saturday the reason he unexpectedly canceled his 2024 tour: He had a stroke.
“OK, so, I was doing this world tour. I was having lots of fun, really loving seeing you guys out there, and I had a really bad pain in my head in Louisiana,” Glover began in video from the night shared by journalist Michael Blackshire. “And I did the show anyway, I couldn’t really see well. So when we went to Houston, I went to the hospital and the doctor was like, ‘You had a stroke.’
“And the first thing I thought was like, here I am still copying Jamie Foxx,” he joked. “That’s really like the second thing, the first thing, the first thing was like, I’m letting everybody down. I know it’s not true, but I broke in my foot. I always promised Ireland I’m gonna be there. And I still haven’t been. And they found a hole in my heart. So I had this surgery. And then I had to have another surgery.”
Watch the performer’s full comments below:
Glover then reflected on larger lessons he’s internalized due to the experience. “So, they say everybody has two lives until they realize. Now everybody has two lives and the second life starts when you realize you have one. You got one life, guys. And I gotta be honest,” he continued. “The life I’ve lived with you guys has been such a blessing. I love seeing and performing for you guys. As my wife says, what I love, she’s like, ‘If this life is a flavor, as soon as I’m done, give me another spoon.’”
He concluded: “You should be living your life how you want. Because it can only get better. If we have to do this again, it can only get better.”
Glover initially told fans the shows would be rescheduled, but later had to walk back those plans.
“After my show in New Orleans, I went to the hospital in Houston to make sure of an ailment that had become apparent. After being assessed, it became clear I would not perform that night, and after more tests, I could not perform the rest of the U.S. tour in the time asked. As of now, I have surgery scheduled and need time out to heal,” Glover wrote on X in October 2024.
He continued, “My path to recovery is something I need to confront seriously. With that said, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the remainder of the North American tour and the U.K. and European dates. Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase.”
