US R&B star Ne-Yo abandoned a concert in Manchester last night, telling fans he was too unwell to continue.

The singer battled through his set at the MEN Arena for almost an hour, before breaking down in tears on stage.

Ne-Yo had complained early on in his performance that he was feeling unwell and could be seen sweating heavily.

Journalist Alistair Beech told Gigwise that, at one point, the star asked "an unknown female singer from his own record label to placate a restless crowd”.

The singer then left the stage for ten minutes before returning in tears to offer his apologies to fans.

“Trust me when I say, I'll be back. I will be back,” Ne-Yo said.

Ne-Yo Fan Malcolm Bryce told Gigwise he thought the singer's tears were “part of the show until he said he had to stop”.

"I think it's fair enough how he handled it, if he was losing his vocals then the show would be sub-par and Ne-Yo is the type of artist that wouldn't want to let his fans down,” Malcom added.

The singer is due to perform in Liverpool tonight. At present, the concert is still scheduled to go ahead.

(by Jason Gregory)