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Rihanna Cancels Lollapalooza Colombia Festival Appearance Over Zika Virus Concerns

Rihanna
Rihanna performs at the Los Angeles Convention Center in February.Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

The show won’t go on. Lollapalooza Colombia has canceled its inaugural festival after Rihanna reportedly pulled out due to concerns over the Zika virus.

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According to Colombian news outlet La Tercera, the Barbadian beauty, 28, was scheduled to headline September’s two-day music festival in Bogotá, Colombia, but recently dropped out, leaving the show’s organizers without sufficient time to find a suitable replacement.

“The organizers wish to express their deep appreciation to all the fans who supported the festival since day one, as well as the sponsors and the media partners,” a statement (written in Spanish) on the official Lollapalooza Colombia website said on Friday, July 1.

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The concert was also scheduled to feature performances from Lana Del Rey, Disclosure, Wiz Khalifa, The Chainsmokers and dozens more.

Lollapalooza first started as an event in Chicago but has since expanded to other locations, including Brazil and Argentina, in recent years.

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The September 17 and 18 festival in Colombia would have been the first in the country. Organizers said in Friday’s statement that they hope to hold the event in Colombia in the future.

Rihanna is currently in the midst of the European leg of her Anti World Tour. 

Colombia has the second-most cases of the Zika virus after Brazil, according to Time magazine. The illness, which affects brain development in unborn children and can cause Guillain-Barré syndrome, a debilitating nervous system disorder, is transmitted by infected mosquitoes.

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