Los Angeles R&B star Ne-Yo tonight provided drama at Manchester's M.E.N Arena after aborting his near sell-out show half way through a headline set.
The self-proclaimed ‘smooth’ pop icon complained of illness after a couple of songs and appeared visibly uncomfortable, at one stage asking for patience from a loyal and fervent Arena audience.
The aborted set relied on backing tracks and audience vocals, with Ne-Yo even pushing out an unknown female singer from his own record label to placate a restless crowd.
By 10pm the singer and his dancing partners trundled off stage, leaving their bemused band charged with an awkward fill in. To his credit, Ne-Yo emerged teary eyed (quite a contrast to his gyrating antics some 10 minutes earlier) vowing to return to the city and finish the show at a later date.
After a similar walkout earlier in the current tour, we weren't totally surprised at Ne-Yo's cry off, captured on video below:
Read our full review of the gig for Manchester Evening News here.
