Luke Bryan has been forced to withdraw from several upcoming shows due to a "continued illness."
The American Idol judge revealed on Wednesday that he will no longer headline Thursday's Country Stampede in Kansas, NebraskaLand Days in Nebraska on Friday, and Country Jam in Colorado on Saturday.
Replacement
However, the stage will not be empty because country star Eric Church has stepped in as Luke's replacement at all three shows.
Breaking his silence, Eric shared a message of support while revealing he will be joined by Joanna Cotton for "something unique".
© Getty Images for ABA"Festivals are part of the fabric of what made us who we are," he said. "Happy to fill in for Luke while he's on the mend. Not a lot of time to plan or get the whole crew together, so I'm bringing Jo and we're gonna do something unique and spontaneous."
NebraskaLand Days Executive Director Bob Lantis said: "We know fans were excited to see Luke Bryan, and we join them in wishing him a speedy recovery."
He added: "We're incredibly fortunate to have a performer of Eric Church's caliber ready to take the stage. He's one of country music's most dynamic entertainers, and we're confident he'll deliver an unforgettable show."
© Getty ImagesLuke broke the news on social media on Wednesday afternoon, writing: "I'm really sorry to say I won't be able to play this weekend's shows due to continued illness."
He continued: "I've been hoping to rally, but my voice is just not there yet. Huge thanks to my buddy @ericchurch for stepping in last minute — and of course, putting on a kick ass show like he always does."
Luke added: "Sitting still is not what I do best so I can't wait to be back soon."
© Getty ImagesLuke's illness comes after he rescheduled shows last weekend after he suffered vocal issues during a show in Rogers, Arkansas, on June 19.
"This is the weirdest thing I've ever dealt with in my life," he said in a fan-captured video. "I cannot have my voice in this venue for some reason. It happens every time, I don't know why."
Luke then announced that he would be refunding everyone's tickets. "I don't give a damn, I'm gonna refund everybody their tickets tonight and we're going to keep doing the damn show, okay?" he told the crowd.
© Getty ImagesThis wasn't his first onstage mishap. Last week, during a performance in Florida, he forgot the words to his popular song, "Strip It Down".
Luke was playing the piano while singing, when all of a sudden, there was a dramatic pause, and he was filmed scratching his chin before he stopped playing.
"I totally forgot all the words," Luke admitted to the crowd with a laugh. "I got it," he assured fans a moment later.
© TikTokLuke appears to have some bad luck when it comes to his stage performances. In April 2024, he took a tumble onstage at the Coast City Country Festival in Vancouver.
"Everybody is reporting [about the] cellphone, but I was kind of hamming that up. I don't think it was a cell phone. I think it was just slick," he told Entertainment Tonight at the time.
He also previously fell on stage in North Carolina, which resulted in a few stitches but no serious harm.
