ZAYN Malik has broken his silence after leaving fans devastated by cancelling a sell-out gig just minutes before he was due to take to the stage.
The Former One Direction star was due to perform at a packed-out O2 City Hall in Newcastle on Tuesday night.
Fans were eagerly waiting for the Stairway to the Sky set to get underway when it was announced on the tannoy the show had been cancelled.
A spokesperson speaking from the stage said the show would not be going ahead.
They said: “We apologise for the late notice. It was his fervent hope that he would be able to continue with the show. This is no longer possible.
“Please contact your point of purchase for details of reschedules and refunds. If you have parents or guardians collecting you please stay within the auditorium and wait to be collected.”
Taking to Instagram, the 31-year-old singer wrote an explanation on his stories:
He wrote: “I’m so sorry to do this but my voice just isn’t there at all tonight and without it, there’s no show.
“I’m truly sorry to let you down, especially at such short notice…I held onto hope until the very last moment.
“I’m hopeful with some rest tonight I’ll be back on stage tomorrow.
“My deepest apologies Newcastle love you all xx.”
Devastated fans were seen streaming out of the O2 City Hall in floods of tears.
Courtni Clarke, 19, had queued for 36 hours to make sure she got to the front of the standing section to get as close as possible to her favourite singer.
But, despite the tears on her face, the bar worker from Leeds says that she is only concerned about Zayn’s health.
She said: “I hope he’s ok. One of the security guards told us they don’t even know if he made it here.
“It’s a disappointment but also a worry. I’m a very, very big fan of Zayn. We got no information of what happened.”
Clarke and other fans spoke about how they paid £150 for tickets plus additional costs for travel to get to the venue.
She called the last-minute cancellation a “deep wound” after seeing the other members of One Direction singing on their solo tours and now no longer being able to see Liam sing live.
Kitty Heidt, 20, a law student at Durham University arrived at 7pm to get into the venue.
“We were very excited to get in,” she said.
“If he didn’t show up, they should have told us. We waited an hour inside anything before it was cancelled.”
“It’s a waste of time. I’m upset and disappointed,” another fan said.
Others defended the singer saying, “A lot of fans care more about them seeing him than his well being.
“I’m happy to miss it as long as he’s okay.”
Zayn is set to wrap up his tour in Edinburgh in just a few days.
The US leg of the tour was postponed after the death of his former bandmate Liam Payne who he has paid tribute to at previous UK shows in Manchester and Leeds.
Liam tragically died on October 16 after falling from a balcony at his hotel in Argentina.
