Australian pop duo Royel Otis have been forced to take action after one member collapsed mid-performance this week.
Comprising Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic, the indie musicians from Sydney were playing at the MS Dockville festival in Hamburg, Germany, when things took a worrying turn.
Footage captured by fans and shared on TikTok showed Royel playing his guitar before falling to the ground with a thud.
Other members of the live band rushed over to help as concerned gasps could be heard among the crowd.
It was initially unknown what caused Royel to collapse, but reports claimed it happened just 15 minutes into the set.
Now, issuing an update to their thousands of followers, the duo have confirmed they need to axe their next performance while he recovers from an illness.
A statement shared on Instagram read: ‘We are really sorry to say that we need to cancel our set at Lowlands + Pukkelpop festival as Roy has been unwell with a virus since last night’s show in Hamburg.’
The stars added: ‘We were really looking forward to playing for you and hope we can see you at one of our other shows soon.
‘Thank you for all your support always [pink heart emoji] Roy + Otis’.
As news of the gig’s cancellation spread, fans expressed their sadness on social media but wished the performer well.
Guitar-pop duo Royel Otis have been making music together since 2019, releasing their debut EP, Campus, in 2021.
Their commercial breakthrough, however, came last January, when the Grammys named Royel Otis as one of ’25 Artists to Watch’ that year, leading to the release of their first album, Pratts & Pain, the following month. It debuted at number one on the ARIA Australian Albums Chart.
Royel Otis proceeded to gain a huge online following thanks to their viral covers, the first being of Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s Murder on the Dancefloor, which also charted Down Under.
Then, last April, the pair covered Linger by The Cranberries, which also became a global hit thanks to social media, even reaching the Billboard Hot 100 in August.
Since then, their career has only continued to thrive, as they made their US TV debut performing their tune Sofa King on Jimmy Kimmel Live last October, going on to sell over 100,000 tickets across Australia, Europe, and the US.
Their success has not been without a smidge of controversy, though.
In May this year, they had to issue an apology after being slammed by listeners for ‘misogynistic’ lyrics.
Moody, released earlier that month, sparked backlash for its use of the word ‘b***h’.
Co-written by award-winning Amy Allen, one line reads: ‘She’s always givin’ it to me. Late nights, she always accusin’. Last time, she said she would kill me. My girl’s a b***h when she’s moody’.
After being blasted by their supporters for the ‘cheap’ dig, entertainment lawyers on behalf of Royel Otis said they were sorry for any upset caused.
‘Moody has been Royel Otis’ highest-performing release in the first two weeks globally, both digitally and on radio,’ they said.
‘This song is written from a specific perspective; it is not intended to convey a broader view or standpoint about women in general.
‘We apologise if anyone understood those lyrics otherwise.’
Despite the criticism, Moody became Royel Otis’s first Billboard number one single.
Fans might also know of member Otis because of his famous mother, multi-millionaire beauty mogul Carla Oates.
He famously used to cover his face in public, having only recently started to share snaps of his face online, much to the delight of fans.
On his decision to cover up, he previously told the Daily Telegraph: ‘It makes it easier to pick pictures; I always look OK because you don’t see this f*****g crooked nose and fat a*s head.’
Royel Otis are set to release their sophomore album, Hickey, on August 22.
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