Kesha Announces Australian Return With 2026 Tour Dates
Part of her wider T–ts Out Tour, the four-date trek of the country will see Kesha performing headline dates in the Australian capital cities of Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth in late February, 2026.
More from Billboard
Jelly Roll & Shaboozey to Headline Australia's Strummingbird Festival
Roze Oficial, Max Carra, Valen & Ramky En Los Controles Rule Billboard Argentina Hot 100 Chart For Third Week With 'Tu Jardín Con Enanitos'
Rosalía Addresses Backlash Over Palestine Silence: 'Shaming Each Other Is Not the Best Way'
Notably, the announced run does not include a stop in Sydney, though her visit to Australia coincides with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. No announcement as to Kesha's potential involvement in the festivities has been released, however.
The upcoming shows will be the musician's first in the country since an appearance at the Australian Open in Melbourne in January, which was coupled with her House of Kesha event in Sydney. Previously, she had also performed as part of the Sydney Mardi Gras in early 2020.
The tour has been marketed as Kesha's first headline tour of Australia in over a decade, seemingly referring to her previous visit as part of the Get Sleazy Tour. This, however, appears to overlook her rescheduled 2018 visit for the Rainbow Tour.
The announcement of these new dates comes just weeks after Kesha officially released her sixth album, . (Period), which also marks her first record as an independent artist.
Prior to the arrival of . (Period), Kesha has been under contract to Kemosabe Records, despite her yearslong legal battle with label owner Dr. Luke, whom she accused of drugging her and raping her at a 2005 party in 2014. The producer has always vehemently denied the allegations, and the two parties reached a settlement in 2023 before Kesha was released from her deal with Kemosabe in March 2024.
'I really do feel like it's been a homecoming in a lot of ways — not only legally, to the rights of my voice, but to letting go of that internalized shame, of letting all that go and coming home to my own body, my joy, myself,' Kesha told Billboard recently.
'And part of that has been healing my relationship with the records that I've put out that were difficult to make — that were perceived in a way that wasn't the way I intended, that were tied to events that I don't stand for.'
Arriving on July 4, the LP debuted atop the Top Album Sales chart, reached No. 3 on the Independent Albums chart and hit No. 17 on the overall Billboard 200.
Kesha – 2026 Australian Tour Dates
Feb. 19, 2026 – Riverstage, Brisbane, QLDFeb. 22, 2026 – Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne, VICFeb. 24, 2026 – AEC Arena, Adelaide, SAFeb. 26, 2026 – Perth HPC, Perth, WA
Best of Billboard
Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1
Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits
H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New York Post
14 minutes ago
- New York Post
Kristine W feared for life on turbulent Delta Air Lines flight
EDM star Kristine W feared for her life when violent turbulence rocked her Amsterdam-bound Delta Air Lines flight Wednesday, sending 25 passengers to hospital. Now, the 'The Boss' songstress believes she has a concussion after she was sent flying into the overhead compartment aboard the rattling Airbus A330-900, a model of aircraft her lawyers allege has a history of malfunctions and shouldn't have been cleared to fly. 'It was absolutely horrifying … I've been performing for 40 years and I've been on airplanes all over the world, and I've never experienced anything like that. I thought, 'We were not going to make it on this one,'' the singer, whose real name is Kristine Elizabeth Weitz, told The Post in an exclusive interview. 5 Singer Kristine W suffered injuries aboard the turbulent Delta Air Lines flight that made an emergency landing this week. Getty Images for iHeartRadio 'I'm a leukemia survivor, and the last time I felt that kind of terror and hopelessness was when I was diagnosed with leukemia 25 years ago.' Weitz was aboard the fated plane out of Salt Lake City to perform at a festival in Amsterdam — posting a joyful picture of herself and her daughter at the gate shortly before takeoff. They were just about an hour into the flight when the attendants were serving drinks and the plane, which can seat more than 250 people, began rattling violently. Passengers were thrown around with food carts and other belongings flying through the cabin. The turbulence came out of nowhere, so the seatbelt light was still off, Weitz recalled. 5 Weitz and her daughter seen smiling at the gate before the flight. Kristine W /Instagram The 17-time Billboard chart topper was wearing the restraint loosely anyway, but it wasn't enough to hold her down or keep her from smashing into the plastic overhang of her window seat. 'I had broken the plastic up in the roof above my head,' said Weitz, adding that the force was so great that she also has bruises on her hips from her seatbelt. Her daughter, Elizabeth, who was sitting elsewhere in the plane, remained in her seat, but suffered whiplash and back pain. One of the flight attendant carts tipped over her during the turbulence and covered her in food and liquids, she said. 5 Weitz suffered bruising from her seatbelt, seen her over an existing surgery scar. Courtesy of Evan Oshan The pair watched other passengers suffer more violent injuries, including one man who was fully lifted out of his seat. The aircraft made an emergency landing Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, where 25 people were carted away to hospitals. Weitz claims she was not seen by emergency services because the responders only paid attention to those who were 'bleeding.' 'They didn't seem ready to handle an incident like that at all. That was the most terrifying part, was watching the disarray,' the singer said. 'We're told they're trained to know what to do with emergencies like this and, wow … that was not the case.' 5 The ceiling sustained damage after some passengers were thrown into the air. Courtesy of Evan Oshan The dance music superstar fears that the incident will have lasting effects both physically and mentally — she's awaiting doctors to confirm her fears that she suffered a concussion, but is more concerned that her anxiety will prevent her from boarding planes in the future. Weitz is currently in Amsterdam for a festival, but says she only made it overseas because of contract obligations: 'I'm not sure, cognitively, if I can remember my lyrics.' Now, her legal team is calling for Delta to ground all Airbus A330-900 aircraft so a federal probe can investigate a string of malfunctions associated with the fleet. 'We believe this was a predictable and preventable occurrence,' said Evan Oshan of Oshan and Associates, who is working with Daily Jones Law Group as co-counsel. 5 Carts carrying food and drink spilled across the cabin, including some items that drenched Weitz's daughter. Facebook / Ricardo Hoogesteger Lawyers filed a formal complaint with the Federal Aviation Administration Friday, alleging that the fleet has a history of critical flight system malfunctions, a pattern of emergency landings and go-arounds, and more. 'They have to find out what was wrong with that plane and what happened, because no one should experience anything like this,' said Weitz. The National Transportation Safety Board said its investigation was too preliminary to determine whether the aircraft had pre-existing defects. Delta Air Lines would not provide new information, and the FAA did not respond to request for comment.


UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
Trailblazing country music singer Jeannie Seely dies at 85
Hosts Luke Bryan (left), Jeannie Seely and Peyton Manning introduce Miranda Lambert during the 56th Annual Country Music Awards at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., on Nov. 9, 2022. Seely died at 85 on Friday. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo Aug. 2 (UPI) -- Singer Jeannie Seely, who helped transform the image of women in country music, has died. She was 85. Seely died Friday in a hospice in the Nashville area, the Country Music Association said, and her publicist, Don Murray Grubbs told told The Tennessean that she died after an intestinal infection. Seely made her debut at Nashville's Grand Ole Opry in 1966 when she was 25, going on to make 5,397 appearances, including her last appearance on Feb. 22, more than any other performer appearing there. "While I've had the privilege of working with Jeannie Seely over the past 25 years, my immediate grief is deeply personal," Country Music Association CEO Sarah Trahern said. "She mentored countless artists, especially women, and while they learned from her confidence and wit, she reminded us she was learning from them too. That humility was part of her magic." Seely became the first woman to host the Grand Ole Opry show, and in 1985 was the first woman to host a half-segment of the Opry. "I feel very fortunate to be part of the Opry tradition and I truly am indebted to all the wonderful fans who have supported me over the years," Seely once said, according to Between 1966 and 1974, she had more than a dozen Top 40 country hits, including Don't Touch Me, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard country chart and appeared on the mainstream Hot 100. A variety of other singers, including folk singer Carolyn Hester, reggae artist Nicky Thomas and soul music legend Etta James, recorded versions of the the song, which favors emotional commitment over sexual gratification. That song earned her the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 1967. It was written by Hank Cochran, who became her husband. They later divorced in 1979, and in 2010 she married Nashville lawyer Gene Ward, who died last year. Other hit singles of heres included All Right (I'll Sign the Papers) in 1971 about divorce; Welcome Home to Nothing in 1968 about a marriage gone bad and Take Me to Bed in 1978. "I think of myself as a feminist," she said. "My idea of 'feminist' is to make sure that women have the same choices that men have always had, and that we are respected for our roles -- whatever they are -- as much as any man is respected for his." Seely changed the image of performers with her songs and wearing miniskirts and go-go boots, including on the usually conservative Opy stage. "I was the main woman that kept kicking on that door to get to host the Opry segments," Seely told the Nashville Scene newspaper in 2005. "I used to say to my former manager Hal Durham, 'Tell me again why is it women can't host on the Opry?' He'd rock on his toes and jingle his change and say, 'It's tradition, Jeannie.' And I'd say, 'Oh, that's right. It's tradition. It just smells like discrimination.'" Seely was born on July 6 in Titusville, Pa., and later changed her name from Seeley to Seely. She first performed on radio station WMGW in Meadville, Pa., at 11 years old. Seely worked at Imperial Records in Hollywood, Calif., as a secretary. She wrote the song Anyone Who Knows What Love is (Will Understand) with Randy Newman and two other collaborators. It reached the the Hot 100 in a version by Irma Thomas in 1964. Boyz II Men and others more than 50 years later recorded the song, which was used in episodes of the science-fiction TV series Black Mirror. In 1965, she signed with Challenge Records, which was owned by Gene Autry. Seely moved to Nashville in 1969 with her husband. She signed with Monument Records, where Don't Touch Me was recorded. The singer turned to bluegrass in the 2000's, including singing a duet with Ralph Stanley. In 2005, in her mid 60s, she sang with country singers Kathy Mattea and Pam Tillis in the Nashville production of The Vagina Monologues. Seely was seriously injured in an auto crash in 1977. Earlier this year, she had back surgery and had complications. She had abdominal surgery in April and then contracted pneumonia before celebrating her 85th birthday on July 6. "Over the past several weeks, I've received so many wonderful messages of love and concern about being missed on the Grand Ole Opry and on 'Sundays with Seely' on Willie's Roadhouse," she told fans in May. "Thank you for those, and I assure you that I miss you just as much!" Notable deaths of 2025 Ryne Sandberg Chicago Cubs Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg waves to the crowd before throwing out a ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field in Chicago on October 12, 2015. Sandberg died on July 28 after a battle with cancer at the age of 65. Photo by Brian Kersey/UPI | License Photo


Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Jeannie Seely, who pushed boundaries and broke hearts at the Grand Ole Opry, dies at 85
Her most popular recording, 'Don't Touch Me,' reached No. 2 on the Billboard country chart and crossed over to the mainstream Hot 100 in 1966. A sensual ballad whose lyrics stress emotional commitment over sexual gratification, the song has been covered by numerous artists, including folk singer Carolyn Hester, reggae artist Nicky Thomas, and soul music pioneer Etta James. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The song won Ms. Seely the Grammy Award for best female country vocal performance in 1967. The record's less-is-more arrangement — slip-note piano, sympathetic background singers and sighing steel guitar — was vintage Nashville Sound on the cusp of 'countrypolitan,' its pop-inflected successor. Advertisement 'Don't open the door to heaven if I can't come in/Don't touch me if you don't love me,' Ms. Seely admonishes her lover, her voice abounding with unfulfilled desire. 'To have you, then lose you, wouldn't be smart on my part,' she sings in the final stanza. She tortures the word 'part' for two measures until her voice breaks and, with it, it seems, her heart. Advertisement Written by Hank Cochran, who would become Ms. Seely's husband, 'Don't Touch Me' anticipated Sammi Smith's breathtakingly intimate version of Kris Kristofferson's 'Help Me Make It Through the Night,' which was released four years later. 'Don't Touch Me,' critic Robert Christgau wrote, 'took country women's sexuality from the honky-tonk into the bedroom.' Ms. Seely blazed a trail for women in country music for the candor of her songs, and for wearing miniskirts and go-go boots on the Opry stage, bucking the gingham-and-calico dress code embraced by some of her more matronly predecessors like Kitty Wells and Dottie West. In the 1980s, she also became the first woman to host her own segment on the typically conservative and patriarchal Opry. 'I was the main woman that kept kicking on that door to get to host the Opry segments,' Ms. Seely told the Nashville Scene newspaper in 2005. 'I used to say to my former manager Hal Durham, 'Tell me again why is it women can't host on the Opry?' He'd rock on his toes and jingle his change and say, 'It's tradition, Jeannie.' And I'd say, 'Oh, that's right. It's tradition. It just smells like discrimination.'" Ms. Seely worked with top-tier Nashville session players who were attuned to the soulful sounds in Memphis, Tenn., and Muscle Shoals, Ala., to build a career around recordings that plumbed themes of infidelity, heartbreak and female emancipation. The titles of some of her singles spoke volumes: 'All Right (I'll Sign the Papers)' (1971), about the ravages of divorce; 'Welcome Home to Nothing' (1968), about a marriage gone cold; and 'Take Me to Bed' (1978). Her unflinching vocals told the rest of the story. Advertisement 'Can I Sleep in Your Arms,' an intimacy-starved rewrite of the Depression-era lament, 'Can I Sleep in Your Barn Tonight, Mister,' was a Top 10 country hit in 1973. (Two years later, Willie Nelson recorded the song for his groundbreaking concept album, 'Red Headed Stranger.') Marilyn Jeanne Seeley was born July 6, 1940, in Titusville, Pa., and grew up in nearby Townville. (She later changed the spelling of her surname.) She was the youngest of four children of Leo and Irene Seely. Her father, a farmer and steel mill worker, played banjo and called square dances on weekends. Her mother sang in the kitchen while baking bread on Saturdays. Ms. Seely first performed on the radio station WMGW in Meadville, Pa., at age 11. 'I can still remember standing on a stack of wooden soda cases because I wasn't tall enough to reach the unadjustable microphones,' she recalled on her website. After graduating from high school, where she was a cheerleader and honor student, she took a job with the Titusville Trust Co. Three years later, she moved to California and went to work at a bank in Beverly Hills. A job as a secretary at Imperial Records in Hollywood opened doors in the music business, and she found early success as a songwriter with 'Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand).' Written with a young Randy Newman and two other collaborators, the song reached the Hot 100 in a version by New Orleans soul singer Irma Thomas in 1964. More than a half-century later, after having been recorded by Boyz II Men and others, it was used in episodes of the science-fiction TV series 'Black Mirror.' Advertisement In 1965, Ms. Seely signed a contract with Challenge Records, the West Coast label owned by country singer Gene Autry. The association yielded regional hits but no national exposure. At the urging of Cochran, whom she married in 1969 (the couple later divorced), Seely moved to Nashville, where she signed with Fred Foster's Monument Records and had her breakthrough hit, 'Don't Touch Me.' She made her Opry debut in the summer of 1966 and briefly starred as the female singer on 'The Porter Wagoner Show,' a nationally syndicated TV program, while also performing regularly with Ernest Tubb. Ms. Seely's biggest country hit as a songwriter came with 'Leavin' and Sayin' Goodbye,' a chart-topping single for singer Faron Young in 1972. Merle Haggard and Ray Price also recorded her originals. In 1977, after a decade of hits, including a handful of Top 20 country duets with crooner Jack Greene, she sustained serious injuries in an automobile accident that almost ended her career. Apart from appearing on the Opry and having a small part in the 1980 movie 'Honeysuckle Rose,' which starred Nelson, she all but retired from performing. (Her other movie appearance was in 2002 in 'Changing Hearts,' starring Faye Dunaway.) In the 2000s, Ms. Seely increasingly turned her attention to bluegrass, recording an award-winning duet with Ralph Stanley. She also emerged as an elder stateswoman of the Opry, which remained her chief passion into the 2020s. Her second husband, Gene Ward, whom she married in 2010, preceded her in death. She did not have any immediate survivors. In 2005, with country singers Kathy Mattea and Pam Tillis, Ms. Seely starred in a Nashville production of Eve Ensler's 'The Vagina Monologues.' It was second nature to her, she told Nashville Scene, to appear in such a politically charged play. Advertisement 'I think of myself as a feminist,' she explained. 'My idea of 'feminist' is to make sure that women have the same choices that men have always had, and that we are respected for our roles — whatever they are — as much as any man is respected for his.' This article originally appeared in