\n<\/p>\n
\n\tWhen Queen<\/a> + Adam Lambert<\/a> wrapped up their 109-date Rhapsody Tour at Japan\u2019s Tokyo Dome on Feb. 14, 2024, it didn\u2019t feel like an event of enormous significance. The revitalized group had been gigging consistently since first coming together in 2012, and they grew in popularity with each outing until the 2018 Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody<\/em> \u2014 which, while factually-challenged<\/a>, grossed nearly a billon dollars worldwide \u2014 supersized their audiences. <\/p>\n \n\tAgainst all odds, and after decades of attempts, the band was finally packing many of the same stadiums as Queen at their peak. It seemed like another tour announcement was imminent.<\/p>\n \n\tBut a little over a year later, Queen guitarist Brian May told Rolling Stone<\/em><\/a> he was having severe doubts about the group\u2019s future as a touring act. \u201cI\u2019ve had 50 years of touring and there\u2019s a part of me that thinks it\u2019s enough,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t like the idea that you wake up in your hotel room and you\u2019re trapped. I had a few experiences recently where stuff happened at home with my family and I could not go home. It got under my skin and I just thought, \u2018I\u2019m not sure if I want this anymore.\u2019 I feel like I\u2019ve given up my freedom too many times.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThis felt like the setup for a massive farewell tour, one that could have grossed them hundreds of millions of dollars. But earlier this week, May stunned fans by definitively stating he was done in an interview with The Times.<\/a><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI made a decision 18 months ago that I didn\u2019t want to tour again,\u201d May said. \u201cA close family friend died when we were in the States, so I said to my tour manager, \u2018I\u2019ll just nip home for a few days and come back.\u2019 She looked me in the eyes and said, \u2018You know you can\u2019t do that.\u2019 I love to play, I love to travel, but the trade-off is sacrificing your freedom. I have a wife [the actress Anita Dobson], grandchildren, and a lot of astrophysics I want to do, so I\u2019m thinking maybe 50 years is enough.\u201d<\/p>\n \n