The “Summer of 69” was probably calmer than the Summer of 2023, at least in terms of concert behavior. In what has become a growing trend this year, yet another artist has had an unruly fan interrupt the show. Thankfully, this time, it seemed to be all in good fun.
Byan Adams, the iconic Canadian rocker, is one of the best-selling artists of all time. It is estimated that the “Cuts Like a Knife” singer has sold between 75 million to upwards of 100 million records and singles. Adams was also the most-played artist on Canadian radio in the 2010s, with 25 top 15 singles up north and more than a dozen in America.
Adams is currently on tour with another 80s icon, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and during a recent Salt Lake City show, the excitement and perhaps too many White Claws got the best of one fan. As Adams belted out his signature hit, “Summer of 69,” a male fan rushed the stage for an unexpected duet.
The man grabbed the microphone as Adams was strumming the guitar and belted out the line “bought it at the five and dime” as Adams stepped back, somewhat amused, and watched the impromptu duet unfold. Moments later, security surrounded the wannabe pop star and escorted him offstage as Adams stepped back to the microphone perfectly with the next line, “It was the Summer of 69.”
The crowd roared with delight as Adams finished the song without missing a beat, even appearing to laugh at the uninvited guest on stage. For Adam’s part, he wasn’t upset or frustrated at the intrusion. He posted to his social media: “Sometimes you just gotta laugh…#stagecrasher #summerof69.”
Fans on social media weighed in as well, even crediting the crasher with good reviews on his singing:
“He just stepped back, let the crazy be crazy, let the professionals do their job, and continued like NOTHING had happened.”
“He actually wasn’t that bad, kudos to Bryan for handling it so well…should have sang the rest of the song together lol.”
Unfortunately, other artists haven’t fared so well in recent times. Since 2020, there has been a growing number of incidents involving unruly fans, from sporting events to comedy shows to rock concerts.
Some incidents are non-violent but do display our society’s self-centered nature. Miranda Lambert had to stop the show and call out a group of female fans as they took selfies during one of her more personally emotional songs during one of her Vegas residency shows.
Others, however, have been violent and have put the performer’s safety in jeopardy. Taylor Swift has to regularly dodge jewelry while on stage, pop star Bebe Rexha was hit by a cell phone while on stage, and artists like Harry Styles and Kelsea Ballerini have also been hit in the face by objects.
While it seems concertgoers have lost all sense of decorum since 2020, at least none have turned violent. At a comedy show in May 2022, comedy legend Dave Chappelle was attacked by a knife-wielding maniac while performing at the Hollywood Bowl. Chappelle wasn’t hurt, but the attack underscored the need for increased security in a post-2020 world.
Thankfully the Bryan Adams incident can be laughed off as good-natured fun, but venues are going to have to increase security for events, or some unsuspecting artist is going to get seriously injured, or worse.
Feature image screengrab from embedded YouTube video
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