Born Stephen Demetre Georgiou in London, he became known to the world as Cat Stevens…that is until he converted to Islam and changed his name again to Yusef Islam.
Currently on a book tour – he mostly turned his back on the music when he converted – Yusef has had to postpone the North American dates of his tour due to what he says are “visa issues”; though he gave no specifics.
His book “Cat on the Road to Findout” is set for an October 7 release and will go on as planned; as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame artists says, “books don’t need visas!”
Numerous non-U.S. citizens have had visa issues recently as the fees continue to rise and processing times drag on.
Yusef noted that they have been waiting for months for the approval; adding, “at this point, the production logistics necessary for my show cannot be arranged in time.”
He continued, “I am really upset!” adding, “not least for my fans who have bought tickets and made travel plans to see me perform.”
The tour was scheduled to begin on October 2 and run through the month. His October 8 stop in Toronto has also been postponed.
Yusef noted that the tour dates could be rescheduled but it would be some time before it could happen; assuming of course, that the visas are approved.
This is not the first time that Yusef has had encounters with visa and travel issues. In 2004 he was sent back to England due to being placed on a “watch list”. The flight was in the air when it was discovered that he was on the plane and on the list. The plane stopped in Maine to deport Yusef before continuing on its journey.