Patrick Bruel cancels all summer festival concerts amid sexual assault investigations, organisers express 'relief'

Concert cancellations announced

French singer and actor Patrick Bruel has cancelled all his festival concerts scheduled between June and September, his production company 14 Productions announced on Friday 29 May. The decision affects around fifteen dates across France, Belgium, and Switzerland, including a sold-out show at the Grandes Marées festival in Jullouville, Normandy, on 24 July, and a performance at the Bastogne Summer Festival in Belgium on 28 June. Three concerts planned for 16–18 June at the Cirque d'Hiver in Paris are also cancelled. Tour dates outside festivals, scheduled for October and November, remain unchanged for now.

We do not wish in any way to expose either the organisers or the public to a climate of tension.

Festival organisers react with relief

Pierre Betton, director of the Grandes Marées festival, described the cancellation as a 'great relief' and said it was 'the only possible solution'. He revealed that the festival had been under increasing pressure from feminist collectives, partners, and local authorities. Betton told franceinfo that the situation had become 'hell internally' over the past two months and that the festival would now 'gain in serenity'. The festival is already working on booking replacement artists for the 24 July slot, for which 4,000 tickets had already been sold.

We explained to him that we were unable to welcome him under these conditions. The soul of our festival is to bring people together, to celebrate, to generate positive emotions and to gather them around music. It was no longer tenable in this context.

Legal investigations and allegations

Bruel, 67, is currently the subject of at least four rape investigations in France and one judicial investigation for sexual assault in Belgium. A total of around thirty women have testified against him in the press in recent months, with eight women accusing him of sexual violence in an investigation published by Mediapart in March. The alleged incidents are said to have occurred between 1992 and 2019. Among the accusers is well-known TV presenter Flavie Flament, who alleges Bruel drugged and raped her in 1991 when she was 16 and he was 32. Bruel contests all the allegations.

I have never forced a woman.

Withdrawal from Les Enfoirés

Earlier on Friday, Bruel also announced his withdrawal from the next show of the charity ensemble Les Enfoirés, which supports the Restos du Cœur. He has been a member since 1993 and had never missed an edition. In a message to fellow members, Bruel wrote that he hoped to return 'when justice has proven my innocence'. The artistic director of the project, Anne Marcassus, confirmed the voluntary withdrawal was made 'so as not to embarrass the Restos du Cœur association and Les Enfoirés'.

Radio stations drop his music

Several radio stations in French-speaking Switzerland have stopped playing Bruel's songs. According to MusicTrace data, his tracks experienced a significant drop in airplay in recent weeks. Stations including BNJ, Rhône FM, LFM, and RTS Option Musique confirmed they had suspended his music, citing a desire to avoid offending listeners. A petition by the feminist collective Salon Féministe calling for the entire tour to be cancelled has gathered nearly 50,000 signatures, with support from singer Pomme and actresses Anna Mouglalis, Corinne Masiero, and Anouk Grinberg.

Protests disrupt performances

The situation had become increasingly difficult for the artist in recent days. On Wednesday evening, a theatre performance in Paris was interrupted by feminist activists who were evacuated from the venue. Canada had already announced the cancellation of three concerts the previous week. Bruel's production company stated that several festival organisers had reported 'being subjected to pressure and prevented from organising their events serenely'.