Anita Baker Cuts Babyface From Tour Lineup, Blames Social Media Harassment From Fans

The issue had been brewing for at least one month. Fans initially reported that something was awry with the early May Anita Baker/ Babyface concert in Newark, New Jersey when Babyface didn’t perform at the Prudential Center. Babyface made an Instagram announcement, at the time, about his absence but since then things escalated quickly and now Baker is back to touring alone.

The news dropped earlier this week after Baker took to Twitter to with her reasons for going solo. She wrote: “After Silently, Enduring Cyber Bulling/Verbal Abuse & Threats of Violence from the Fan Base, of Our Special Guest/Support Act. In the Interest of Personal Safety. I will continue, The Songstress Tour, alone. Appropriate refunds will be made.”

Along with the tweets, Baker attached a new poster of The Songstress tour, which ends in December. The poster shows the songstress by herself.

The day after those tweets, Babyface took to IG to have his own say: “I am saddened by the news that Anita Baker has decided to remove me from ‘The Songstress Tour’ It’s unfortunate and disheartening to see how things have played out via social media. I have nothing but love & respect for Anita and I wish her the best for the remainder of her tour.”

What really happened here when two mega stars link forces for a tour and then one mega star departs? The internet is full of thoughts and ideas, but Baker’s Twitter account shows several posts alluding to bullying and harassment from fans, stemming from the May event. It also notes that today is the 33rd anniversary of her seminal work of art, Compositions.

The Backstory

The two stars on tour together created excitement in the R&B community last year when the tour was announced. One, because Baker had previously retired and fans were afraid she may never tour again. Two, because Babyface had released a new album (Girls Night Out, in October 2022) and like Baker, has a set list that soundtracked a generation. Baker was initially touring solo, but added Babyface as a feature.

Then, Babyface didn’t perform in New Jersey, and in a previous IG post, he explained why:

“I was asked not to perform in order to give Ms. Baker her space and time to perform,” the musician and producer wrote. It should be noted that his set was canceled due to technical issues, hence leaving the remaining performance time to the headliner, Baker.

In truth, both stars could carry a tour alone. Some fans openly questioned how it was possible for Babyface to pare himself down to only being an opening act. However, there are plenty of superstars who work with their friends, so fans took it as a bonus. That said, (judging from the social media response) many music lovers are taking sides, and even more are disappointed that the two have broken up. It remains to be seen how Baker’s management will deal with refunds for those who wanted to see Babyface.