Singer songwriter Patti Smith was recently forced to cancel her performance in Italy and is now reported to have undergone hospitalization for a “sudden illness.” According to Consequence, Smith had to cancel her Bologna’s Duse Theatre performance yesterday, Tuesday, December 12 after falling ill prior to the show’s start. Now, it was revealed that the singer has been reportedly discharged from her hospital visit and canceled two additional events for this week. The singer’s Venice show, now canceled, was supposed to be held on Thursday, December 14. She was also supposed to attend a signing on Friday, December 15, at the Rizzoli Bookshop in Milan.

The representatives for Duse Theatre have since released a statement regarding the cancellation of Patti Smith’s concert. They apologized to Smith’s fans for the inconvenience of canceling the singer’s show. They also gave their wishes to the singer for a quick recovery from her unspecified illness.

Last year, on the 13th of October, Patti Smith’s 1978 track, “Rock n’ Roll N******” disappeared from most music streaming services. The song’s title, particularly its use of the N word was taken offensively. However, Smith did not intend it to be interpreted in a racist way. She intended to redefine the word as “an artist mutant that was going beyond gender.” In 2021, Patti Smith released a seven song EP titled Live At Electric Lady. 

Photo Credit: Brett Padelford