Back in November, Journey announced plans for a lengthy U.S. trek this year dubbed the Freedom Tour 2022 featuring Billy Idol and Toto opening the first and second respective portions of the outing, but now comes word that Idol has dropped off the tour for health reasons.
Instead, Toto now will be the support act for Journey’s entire trek, which kicks off on February 22 in Pittsburgh and is mapped out through a May 11 show in Hartford, Connecticut.
Idol’s departure from Journey’s Freedom Tour is due to a chronic sinus infection that will require surgery in the coming days.
“The last thing I ever want to do is cancel shows and I am absolutely gutted that I won’t be able to perform the upcoming dates with Journey as planned,” Idol says in a statement. “I wish Journey only the best on their tour and give thanks to TOTO for stepping in for me.”
The trek features a total of 40 concerts, including two newly added dates that are scheduled for March 4 in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and on March 6 in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Tickets for the two shows will go on sale to the public on Monday, February 7, at 10 a.m. ET. In addition, pre-sale tickets will be available via Ticketmaster starting today, February 3, at 10 a.m. ET. Visit JourneyMusic.com for more information.
Toto originally had been slated to join Journey’s tour in April, and had lined up a U.S. headlining trek that was to have run from February 25 through March 19, but now their own outing has been postponed until a later date.
A note on Toto’s official website advises that tickets purchased for the band’s headlining shows will be honored when the dates are rescheduled. Details about those shows will be announced soon.
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