Lewis Capaldi paid ‘six-figure sum’ to play Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2021
Lewis Capaldi will perform a one-off gig despite postponing his 2021 tour dates to focus on his second album
By Grace Almond
Lewis Capaldi was reportedly paid “six figures” to perform at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, set to take place this Saturday (11 December).
Capaldi postponed his 2021 tour dates to give him the opportunity to focus on his second studio album, but will perform a one-off gig a day before Sir Lewis Hamilton is set to compete, The Sun reports.
Capaldi began writing the follow-up to his 2019 debut album ‘Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent’ last year, and explained his reasons behind postponing his live shows to his fans in lengthy posts on Instagram and Twitter, which read:
“I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been terrified about making my next album since the moment I finished ‘Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent’.
“I’ve been writing loads of tunes I’m really excited about and I can’t wait for you to hear them. I really want to make sure whatever I put out next is the absolute best it can be, partly for my own sanity, cause I’m going to have to sing these songs every night for the next few years on tour, but ultimately for all of you who made the first album everything it was.
The posts continued: “Despite having all this extra time to write, all the COVID restrictions have made it harder to go and record stuff I’ve been working on or even be around all the people I loved working with on the first album.
“For that reason, it is with an extremely heavy heart that I’ve made the difficult decision to reschedule this year’s shows and put all my effort into making the best album I can for you.
“I hate the thought of letting anyone down, especially after the year we’ve just had but I know that, more than anything, getting the album right has to be my number one priority at the moment. I hope you understand.
“I’m really sorry I won’t be out there with you this year, but I’ll be back in 2022 with new music and a shit load of shows in as many places as I can possibly get to across the world.”
Capaldi recently employed the services of One Republic’s Ryan Tedder – who has previously worked with the likes of Beyoncé and Adele – to help with his forthcoming second album.
The Sun reported that Capaldi has become the latest star to employ his talents, with Tedder telling the newspaper: “I was playing the songs an hour ago in the car and it’s just like, goosebumps!
He added: “The guy could sing a random song in Spanish and it would still give me goosebumps. He’s so good.”