The singer, 34, who performed to sold-out crowds at London’s Hyde Park yesterday and on Friday – her first public UK gigs in five years – also revealed the “brutal” reaction to her decision left her a shell of a person.
Adele cancelled her highly anticipated gigs at Caesar’s Palace just 24 hours before she was due to perform her first show there in January, claiming the production was not ready.
The Someone Like You hit-maker has faced a backlash at having so far failed to reschedule the shows, with some accusing her of “diva-like” behaviour.
On Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, Adele told host Lauren Laverne: “I definitely felt everyone’s disappointment and I was devastated.
“I was frightened about letting them down. I thought I could pull it together and make it work, and I couldn’t. And I stand by that decision.
“I don’t think any other artist would have done what I did and that’s why it was such a massive story. You can’t buy me.”
But she also hit back at those who have questioned the lack of information about the rescheduled shows, telling them: “Of course I’m working on it!
“I’m not going to update you if I ain’t got nothing to update you with, because that just leads to more disappointment. Maybe my silence has been deadly, I don’t know.”
Describing the impact the Vegas episode had on her, she said: “It was horrible. I was a shell of a person for a couple of months.
“I just had to wait it out and just grieve it, I guess. Just grieve the shows and get over the guilt. But it was brutal.”
She also discussed her notable weight loss, saying her new-found passion for exercising has helped her deal with chronic anxiety.
However, she said she regrets how some of her fans responded to the change, saying: “Some of the ones I saw were young, they were like 15, and there were some other people who felt very betrayed by me, being like “oh, she’s given in to the pressure of it” which didn’t really bother me because (they) ain’t holding my hand at night at 4am when I’m crying my heart out with anxiety and needing a distraction.”
The mum-of-one also revealed her partner, American sports agent Rich Paul, 40, has helped her become less reclusive, explaining: “He’s like, “If you want to go to that restaurant, you should go and if you want to go to this birthday party, you should go”.”
