Blink-182 has postponed the first leg of its highly anticipated reunion tour after drummer Travis Barker busted his finger during rehearsals last month.
Lead singer Tom DeLonge announced Wednesday that the rock band intends to reschedule several shows in Mexico and South America while Barker recovers from his injury. The percussionist underwent surgery Tuesday after dislocating and tearing ligaments in his left ring finger.
“I’m so sorry to everyone in South America that we couldn’t be down there,” DeLonge said in an Instagram video. “This has been something we’ve been aiming to do for so long, and we worked so hard, and we just had one of those freak accidents that nobody saw coming.
“Travis needs to go in and have surgery on his finger, and we have to get that well. We have to get that strong before we can do anything else.”
The vocalist and guitarist assured fans who purchased tickets to see Blink-182 this month in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru and Mexico that the band would still “do all that in 2024.” The tour was previously scheduled to begin March 11 in Tijuana, Mexico.
“This is just so sad,” DeLonge continued.
“These are some of the most important places in the world for a band. This is like the pinnacle of our career … coming down and playing for you guys. So I really want you all to know that we are devastated, and we plan to come back. … I really want you to know, from my heart to yours, how important you guys are to us.”
On Feb. 8, Barker revealed via Twitter that he injured his finger at work. He later posted photos of his swollen finger and a video of someone popping the damaged digit back into place.
“I was playing the drums at rehearsals yesterday and I smashed my finger so hard I dislocated it and tore the ligaments,” tweeted Barker, who bounced back from a health scare last June.
In October, Barker, DeLonge and Mark Hoppus of Blink-182 confirmed they would be going on tour together for the first time since DeLonge exited the group in 2015. The musicians are slated to play Los Angeles’ Banc of California Stadium on June 16-17 before traveling to San Diego (June 19-20), San Jose (June 22) and Sacramento (June 23).
“You’ve waited so long … and we’ve waited so long too,” DeLonge said Wednesday.
“This is just devastating on so many levels, but we’re gonna get Travis better, and we’re gonna come down — the three of us together — and we’re gonna rock, and we’re gonna have an incredible time with you guys.”