Janelle Monae has pulled out of her first two Australian shows with Kimbra after being struck down with an undisclosed illness.
The Grammy-winner failed to take the stage on Saturday night in Melbourne - it was the duos first date of their co-headlining tour - and the pair have since announced they have postponed their second show in Sydney tonight as Monae has to stay in Melbourne under medical supervision.
There is no word yet as to whether her illness will impact on the show scheduled for Auckland's Vector Arena on Saturday. They are also due to play in Brisbane on Thursday.
Kimbra performed her set in Melbourne - including three new songs from her up-coming album - but Monae did not take the stage, reportedly on the advice of doctors.
The news was read out by a member of Monae's touring party at 10.15pm, about 30 minutes after Kimbra's opening set at the Forum Theatre. Monae was supposed to take the stage at 9.45pm.
The show's promoter then issued this statement: "As announced by Janelle Monáe's band on stage, Janelle Monáe has been taken ill at short notice and was unable to perform tonight's scheduled show. Ticket purchasers are invited to attend Janelle and Kimbra's Melbourne show at the Plenary on Monday May 26".
Monae has made no statement about the illness, however after the show Kimbra "invited" the audience back to the second show, and sent her support to Monae:
Let's all lift up our thoughts & prayers for @JanelleMonae. We had a beautiful time playing 4 u 2night & we will be both be back on the...
....on the 26th of May to play The Plenary - you are all invited back. Wishing Janelle a speedy recovery & we'll see you again soon. x
- nzherald.co.nz