John Legend postpones Van Wezel show in Sarasota

John Legend, originally scheduled to open the Van Wezel's 43rd season Oct. 19, has postponed his upcoming tour in order to finish work on his new studio album.

The Sarasota venue stated this morning that the neo-soul singer, pianist and songwriter took to social media Tuesday to inform fans  that his fall 2012 tour will be postponed until 2013 to coincide with his forthcoming album "Love In The Future."

Here's the statement:

Hey beautiful people,

I'm writing with a change of plans to share with you. As you all know, I've been working on my new album, Love in the Future, with Kanye and the rest of my creative team for a while now. I planned to release the album this Fall and go on tour to perform new songs from the album. We announced the dates before we'd finished the album because we were sure we'd finish the album in time. But, unfortunately, while the creative process has been exciting and I'm pretty certain we're going to deliver the best album of my career so far, the timing hasn't adhered to the schedule I originally envisioned. In other words, we're not done with the album. And my team and I have made the agonizing decision to put off the tour until 2013* when we know we will have the new music done and will be ready to fully unveil the creative vision through the album and the live experience.

I've never postponed a tour or done anything like this before. I've only missed a show due to illness a couple times in my eight-year career. I don't like letting my fans down, and I sincerely regret disappointing the thousands of you who have already spent your hard-earned money and gotten excited to see the show. Please know that we will try our best to make the music and the 2013 tour well worth the wait. In the meantime, ticket holders can get a refund on your ticket purchases now.

Thanks for your patience. I sincerely apologize if I've let any of you down. I'm going to get back to work and make sure we make this album the "best you've ever had."

Sincerely,

John

Anyone who has purchased tickets can call the Van Wezel Box Office at (941) 953-3368 for information regarding a credit to another performance or refund.

The Van Wezel, through no fault of its own, has had a rough start to the 2012-13 season. In August, just days after announcing the show, Anita Baker canceled.  

—Publicity photo of John Legend.