The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie Diagnosed With Terminal Cancer

Gord Downie, lead singer of the Tragically Hip, has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. The band shared the news in a statement this morning, in which they also announced plans to tour this summer. “This feels like the right thing to do now, for Gord, and for all of us,” they wrote. “What we in The Hip receive, each time we play together, is a connection; with each other; with music and it’s magic; and during the shows, a special connection with all of you, our incredible fans. So, we’re going to dig deep, and try to make this our best tour yet.” Find the statement below. The band will release a new album, Man Machine Poem, on June 17.

Downie is a founding member of the band, which formed in 1984. The band has won multiple Juno Awards, and been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

The statement:

Hello friends. We have some very tough news to share with you today, and we wish it wasn’t so.

A few months ago, in December, Gord Downie was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.

Since then, obviously, he’s endured a lot of difficult times, and he has been fighting hard. In privacy along with his family, and through all of this, we’ve been standing by him.

So after 30-some years together as The Tragically Hip, thousands of shows, and hundreds of tours…We’ve decided to do another one. 

This feels like the right thing to do now, for Gord, and for all of us.

What we in The Hip receive, each time we play together, is a connection; with each other; with music and it’s magic; and during the shows, a special connection with all of you, our incredible fans.

So, we’re going to dig deep, and try to make this our best tour yet. 

We hope you can come out and join us this summer – details and dates will be coming this week.

And we sincerely thank all of you, for your continued love and support,

Paul, GordD, Johnny, Rob, GordS

Watch the video for “In A World Possessed By The Human Mind”:

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