KT Tunstall has cancelled all her upcoming summer live shows due to the development of tinnitus in her right ear. The Scottish singer was due to support Hall & Oates on their late summer tour but has pulled out of all her gig dates until the end of the year.

“The decision to pull myself out of my Summer 2021 touring schedule has been an extremely difficult one to make,” Tunstall wrote to her fans on Twitter. “Playing live has been my life for the last 20 years, and is my deepest passion."

"I wish to play live and create music for the rest of my life, but to best ensure I will be able to do so, I must put my hearing health first."

"It is hard to fathom pulling out of such a wonderful opportunity."

Tunstall permanently lost the hearing in her left ear in 2018. At that time she had also developed tinnitus but instead of taking a break had continued with her tour. She lost hearing in the ear overnight.

Since then Tunstall has had to pay extra attention to her ear health. In her most recent statement, she explained that her want to play live music for as long as she can outweighs her need for a tour-heavy schedule.

"Touring so intensively and consecutively have made me question whether my remaining hearing will be able to handle it, and as a result, I have decided that the only healthy way forward for me as a ‘live’ musician is to completely avoid lengthy back-to-back touring which causes inevitable exhaustion and stress.

“To move forward safely in my career, I must ensure that my touring schedule leaves adequate rest between smaller batches of shows," she wrote online.

Hey folks,

Sending love & thanks in advance to those of you who will have to wait a little longer until I see you, but I promise I *will* see you soon - in rude (and rocking) health! 🙏🏼⚡️

Much love, KT x pic.twitter.com/tu1T7TC0i9

— KT Tunstall (@KTTunstall) July 27, 2021