The Killers welcome fan on stage to play drums at Reading 2023
In what will likely be a memory that will stay with them for the rest of their lives, a fan was invited by The Killers to join them and play drums for a song at their Reading 2023 show on Saturday, August 26th. The fan, named Ozzy, had been holding up a sign begging the band to let him play drums for him, which is fast becoming a tradition for the Las Vegas pop-rock outfit.
However, before letting Ozzy on stage, The Killers frontman Brandon Flowers said, “We have one large stipulation. Let me see your face. I like your sign, but where are you from?” Clearly happy with both Ozzy’s face and answer, Flowers responded: “You’re from the UK. Let the kid up.”
Kindly clarifying for the audience that their new temporary drummer was “from just outside of Bath,” Flowers invited Ozzy onto the drumkit, where the eager fan played at a slightly slower tempo than the band was used to. “Go faster,” Flowers said before jokingly suggesting that Ozzy play “more cocaine than marijuana”. After performing with the band, Ozzy rejoined the audience, receiving massive applause from both The Killers and attendees.
The wholesome moment sharply contrasted with another performance the week before, where the band drew significant criticism for inviting a Russian fan to play drums while performing in Georgia – a country that has longstanding tension with Russia after they were invaded by them in 2008.
In a statement, the band wrote: “Good people of Georgia, it was never our intention to offend anyone! We have a tradition of inviting people to play drums, and it seemed from the stage that the initial response from the crowd indicated that they were okay with tonight’s audience participation member coming onstage with us.”
“We recognize that a comment meant to suggest that all of the Killers’ audience and fans are ‘brothers and sisters’ could be misconstrued,” they continued. “We did not mean to upset anyone, and we apologize. We stand with you and hope to return soon.”
Attendants of Reading’s sister festival, Leeds, can catch The Killers performing during the evening of August 27th. Watch Ozzy’s contribution to the band below.
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