Donald Glover has told fans he still feels he owes Ireland a concert after revealing that a stroke and heart surgery forced him to cancel his 2024 Childish Gambino tour, including a scheduled date at Dublin's 3Arena.
Speaking during a monologue at Tyler, the Creator’s Camp Flog Gnaw festival in Los Angeles, the 42-year-old said that one of his first thoughts when he learned he had suffered a stroke was that he was "letting everybody down". He added: "I always promised Ireland I’m going to be there, and I still haven’t been."
Glover, who performs as Childish Gambino, explained that he fell ill during his New World tour last year. He said he experienced a severe pain in his head while on the road, struggled to see properly, and later went to hospital in Houston, where doctors told him he had had a stroke.
The New World tour began in August 2024 and was due to continue into 2025, with shows planned across North America, Europe and Australia. It was also scheduled to include a Dublin date in December 2024, but Glover cancelled the remaining concerts after completing 18 shows, initially citing an unspecified "ailment" and telling fans he needed surgery and time to recover.
On stage at Camp Flog Gnaw, Glover said further tests revealed a hole in his heart, and that he had to undergo two operations. He also referred to breaking his foot during the same period. Footage of the performance shows him sitting on the stage as slow music plays while he talks fans through what happened.
Glover lightened the mood by joking that he felt he was "still copying Jamie Foxx", referring to the US actor and comedian’s stroke in 2023, which also began with a severe headache. He then turned reflective, telling the crowd: "They say everybody has two lives and the second life starts when you realise you have one. You got one life, guys, and I gotta be honest, the life I’ve lived with you guys has been such a blessing."
When he first postponed dates in September 2024, Glover told fans in a statement that he needed to focus on his physical health and urged them to hold on to their tickets. On 4 October 2024 he confirmed that the rest of the North American, UK and European shows, including Dublin, would not go ahead because he faced surgery and needed "time out to heal".
The tour was billed as his final run under the Childish Gambino name, tied to his album Bando Stone & The New World, but during his Camp Flog Gnaw appearance Glover suggested his health scare had given him a new perspective, telling fans he loved performing for them and quoting his wife as saying: "If this life is the flavour, as soon as I’m done, give me another scoop."
