Paula Abdul cancels Canadian tour, citing recent injuries

Paula Abdul has cancelled her upcoming 21-date Canadian tour as she deals with unspecified recent injuries.

The Los Angeles Lakers cheerleader-turned-pop hitmaker announced late Wednesday on her social media platforms that doctors advise six to eight weeks of recovery after she undergoes a "minor procedure."

That time would overlap her Straight Up! to Canada Tour where she was billed alongside Tiffany and Taylor Dayne. The tour was scheduled to begin Sept. 25 in Victoria and end Oct. 26 in Sydney, N.S.

Planned stops in Alaska and North Dakota were also cancelled. Her announcement said tickets would be refunded at the point of purchase.

The 62-year-old singer and dancer completed an extensive tour opening for New Kids on the Block that included two Toronto concerts in August.

Those performances effectively offered a shortened version of Abdul's plans for the Canadian tour, she told The Canadian Press in a recent interview. The idea was to present "a show within a show" that mixed career highlights with a crash course in becoming a professional dancer.

The concept featured hints of Abdul's absurd sense of humour, in particular a moment where she winked at her age by having one of her much younger dancers wheel up an oxygen tank.

"It's a gag," she acknowledged, nevertheless noting the tank is real.

"But while it's out there, I might as well take a puff. So the first thing I say to my dancer is 'Just turn it on before you come.'

"I planned on using it three times in the show," she said. "But it's overkill."

In her social media post, Abdul said that in order to "keep going" she received "targeted injections" for pain, but they offered temporary relief.

"The demands of an entire tour is a different story," she wrote.

Beginnings as choreographer

Abdul launched her entertainment career as a choreographer for some of the U.S. music scene's biggest stars, including Janet Jackson and Madonna.

In the late 1980s, she became a pop star in her own right, with hits that included Straight Up, Opposites Attract and Rush Rush, before reaching a new generation as one of the judges on American Idol.

Her early years as a contemporary dancer who also created intricate tap and jazz routines left permanent damage, Abdul said.

"I have joint problems, arthritis problems," she said.

"The kind of stuff that I did — I was already breaking barriers and creating different kinds of choreography that's difficult on the body."

"But I'm 62 now. I will always have the honesty with myself [about] where I need to reinvent and do something that doesn't look like I'm doing less, but it's just a different version of me."

She added, "I'm going to keep doing this until I can't do it anymore. And you know what, it ain't that easy getting up. It ain't that easy breathing."