The Red Hot Chili Peppers are back after major awards show
The Red Hot Chili Peppers will not perform at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday. The awards show announced Wednesday evening that the band – consisting of co-founders Anthony Kiedis, Flea, drummer Chad Smith and guitarist John Frusciante – were forced to cancel their scheduled performance due to “unforeseen circumstances”. More details were not provided.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers were first confirmed on the roster at this year’s show in mid-April. The performance, fresh off the release of their 12th studio album Unlimited love, was to mark the group’s first performance on the BBMAs since 1999, when they sang “Scar Tissue” and, with Snoop Dogg, “Red Hot Mama.” Although it’s unclear why the band are no longer able to take the stage on Sunday night, it has been confirmed that the band’s summer tour is set to continue as planned. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are also set to headline the Austin City Limits festival in October.
— Billboard Music Awards (@BBMA) May 11, 2022
Following news of the group’s canceled performance, the Billboard Music Awards announced that Machine Gun Kelly and country duo Dan + Shay had been tapped to perform on Sunday night. The evening will mark Kelly’s BBMA debut. Kelly and Dan + Shay are both BBMA finalists this year, with Kelly nominated for Best Rock Artist, an award he won last year, and Dan + Shay for Best Country Duo/Group, an award that he won. they won in 2019.
Kelly and Dan + Shay join an impressive roster of artists that includes, among others, Morgan Wallen, Florence + the Machine, Maxwell and Silk Sonic. The awards show announced on Monday that Becky G, Ed Sheeran, Elle King and Miranda Lambert, who are set to perform their duet “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”, are also being tapped to perform. “Sicko Mode” rapper Travis Scott will also perform, marking his first performance at an awards show and his first TV performance since the Astroworld festival tragedy in November that left 10 dead and hundreds injured.
The 2022 Billboard Music Awards are set to air live at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday. The show begins at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.