Matt Rife backed out of comedy shows at Indiana University Wednesday evening last minute due to an “unexpected medical emergency.”
“I’m so f–king sorry, but due to a last minute medical emergency i have to reschedule our shows tonight (again),” the stand-up comic, 28, explained via his Instagram Story Wednesday.
“I’ve been doing 40+ shows a month for a year and half and never had to do something like this.”
He then apologized again, “I’m so sorry, I hope you understand and I love you so much.”
An email ticket buyers received and Page Six obtained revealed Rife had to cancel his shows after he “experienced extreme exhaustion symptoms and nearly fainted heading to the venue.”
“Matt is currently under advisement from his medical team to take immediate time off from touring for two weeks,” the email also stated.
“Unfortunately, due to immediate health concerns, Matt’s shows at the Chicago Theater / Ryman Auditorium are being rescheduled. … Future dates will not be affected, and his shows will continue, starting in Memphis on 6/12.”
Page Six has learned that Rife “nearly fainted” due to exhaustion.
The Chicago Theater shows will be moved to Dec. 26, 27, 29 and 30. The new dates for the Ryman Auditorium shows are pending, and full refunds will be issued for those who can’t make the new dates.
A source confirms to Page Six exclusively that Rife is doing much better since his health scare.
“He’s currently resting and will make a good recovery,” an insider tells us Thursday.
Earlier this week, Rife posted on X about the toll touring has taken on him, writing, “Sometimes i feel 98 years old and then i remember i sleep maybe 14 hours a week if I’m lucky so I am quite literally a corpse.”
An Instagram post from the Indiana University Auditorium, where the shows were set to take place, reassured fans Wednesday their payments “will be refunded in full and will be reflected within 30 days.”
“i sleep maybe 14 hours a week if I’m lucky,” he added at the time.
Robert Sabo for NY Post
People who were going to attend the shows had mixed reactions to the announcement.
“I love driving 3 hours for it to be cancelled !” one peeved fan commented under the school’s post.
Another was seemingly more concerned about Rife’s well-being but was still upset over the decison.
“Hope everything is okay ! However, I was pissed,” the fan commented.
“Bought tickets almost a YEAR ago. Suppose to be a surprise for my husband . & didn’t even get notified it was cancelled til we were trying to find parking . 🤬”
A third person opined that the comedian should not have been invited in the first place, writing, “Wish it wasnt because of a medical emergency, but glad it was cancelled. Boo IU for platforming misogynists.”
Last November, Rife received a lot of backlash after he made a joke about domestic violence in his Netflix special, “Natural Selection.”
During the bit, the “Wild ‘N Out” alum quipped that he was once seated at a restaurant in Baltimore by a hostess who had a black eye.
“This is the face of the company? This is who you have greeting people?” he asked before claiming his pal suggested that the woman should be put in the kitchen where “nobody has to see her face.”
Rife then claimed he responded, “Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn’t have that black eye.”
The “Matt Rife: Only Fans” comic responded to the criticism by posting a fake apology via his Instagram Story that read, “If you’ve ever been offended by a joke I’ve told – here’s a link to my official apology” with a link to special needs helmets.
