Lenny Kravitz has postponed his North American tour, which was in support of his new album Baptism and included a Toronto Molson Amphitheatre date Sept. 15.

Citing "family matters," Kravitz issued a statement yesterday, saying, "I was really looking forward to getting out there to meet and play for my fans. Unfortunately, things come up in life that you cannot control.

"I hope my fans will understand," he said, "and I definitely will make it up to them with these shows next year."

Kravitz's 19-city North American tour, his first since 2002, was to kick off in Atlantic City, N.J. He had just completed tours of Europe and Japan.