Wildfire Smoke Forces the Black Keys, Creed, and More to Postpone Concerts
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- The Black Keys postponed their Chicago concerts due to wildfire smoke, rescheduling to October 20 and 21 and honoring all current tickets at the venue.
- John Mellencamp postponed his July 16 show at Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan, following guidance from public health authorities, with Ticketmaster issuing automatic refunds.
- Mavis Staples had her July 16 SummerStage performance at Central Park cancelled due to an unsafe air quality index, with no reschedule confirmed at time of publication.
- War and Treaty cancelled their July 16 show at Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Park in New York City, citing the city's state of emergency related to ongoing wildfire conditions and thanking first responders.
- Creed postponed their sold-out July 16 Minnesota show due to "unsafe air conditions resulting from the ongoing Canadian wildfires," moving the performance to September 5.
Why it matters: At least five major touring acts across at least three states—Michigan, New York, and Minnesota—lost July 16 performances to the same air-quality event, leaving venues and ticketholders to navigate a patchwork of refund policies: Ticketmaster purchases refunded automatically for Mellencamp's show, original tickets valid for Creed's rescheduled September 5 date, and SummerStage confirming nothing for Staples at time of publication.
