Adele Doubles Down on Controversial Decision

Adele is standing by her decision to postpone at the last minute her Las Vegas residency. After initially announcing the delay back in January, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, a lack of time, and material delays as issues affecting the show, the “Easy On Me” singer told BBC Radio 4 Sunday that the show simply wasn’t “good enough” for her to agree to move forward with it. 

“I definitely felt everyone’s disappointment, and I was devastated, and I was frightened about letting them down,” Adele revealed of making the tough call. “I thought I could pull it together and make it work, and I couldn’t, and I stand by that decision.” When it came down to putting on a sub-par show, Adele said she was willing to suffer a financial loss to make sure things turned out how they wanted.

“You can’t buy me, you can’t buy me for nothing,” she explained. “I’m not going to just do a show because I have to, or because people are going to be let down, or because we’re going to lose loads of money.” Receiving the public backlash from her decision was tough, even if Adele stands by what she thought was right. “I was a shell of a person for a couple of months,” the Grammy winner admitted. “I just had to wait it out and just grieve it, I guess, just grieve the shows and get over the guilt, but it was brutal.”

There’s still no date for when Adele’s Las Vegas residency will kick off now, but the artist said she’s “working on” the show actively. “Of course, I could be someone on TikTok or Instagram Live every day being like, ‘I’m working on it,’” she said. “Of course, I’m working on it!” The “Hello” singer added, “I’m not gonna update you if I ain’t got nothing to update you with because that just leads to more disappointment.”

Adele’s interview with BBC came just one day after her first traditional concert in five years, a two-night performance at London’s Hyde Park that marked her first time on stage since her performance at the 2022 Brit Awards in February, which followed the Adele One Night Only telecast late last year. Supporting her in Hyde Park were Adele’s boyfriend, Rich Paul, and her ex-husband, Simon Konecki.