BALTIMORE, MD—Garth Brooks has canceled the next five cities in his 2021 stadium tour, the singer announced on Wednesday.

Since restarting the tour in July, The Garth Brooks Stadium Tour has entertained over 300,000 fans across the first 5 cities. Now, with a new wave of COVID-19 spreading across the nation, the tour has arrived at the difficult decision of cancelling and refunding approximately 350,000 tickets in the tour’s next 5 cities.

For ticket holders, no action is required to obtain a refund; Ticketmaster will issue a refund to the original method of payment used at time of purchase.

“In July, I sincerely thought the pandemic was falling behind us. Now, watching this new wave, I realize we are still in the fight and I must do my part. I have asked the wonderful cities of Cincinnati and Charlotte to wait too long and I don’t want to now do that same thing to the great folks in Boston and Baltimore,” said Brooks. “As far as Nashville, we are looking for a make up date from the July rain out and though this is not COVID related, to make them wait makes me sad, as well. So, it is with a heavy heart we announce the decision to cancel all 5 shows but with a hopeful heart, we will reschedule and start over when this wave seems to be behind us.”

The 5 concert locations being cancelled are Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, scheduled for September 18th, Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, scheduled for September 25th, M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, scheduled for October 2nd, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, scheduled for October 9th, and Nissan Stadium in Nashville which has not been rescheduled yet.

“The joy I have seen in everyone’s faces as live music returns has been more than worth our constant diligence to maintain safety protocols not only for the fans, but for our band, the crew and the hard working staff in these stadiums.” Brooks added. “Their dedication to safety for the people who fill those seats has been a miracle to watch and a blessing to receive. I am truly grateful.”

A spokesperson for the tour said the team will continue to monitor the virus’ impact and watch how schools, sports, and other entertainment entities are handling this stage of the pandemic.

“I’m sincerely hoping we are back on tour before the year’s end,” said Brooks. “With that said, the most important thing to me is fulfilling my end of the Stadium Tour by making sure every show is doable before putting tickets on sale (that is why we pulled the Seattle on sale) and making sure the environment these people are trading their time and money to put themselves into is not only the best experience ever, but also the safest one we can provide.”