Axl Rose took to Twitter during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend to celebrate Festivus a bit early. The Guns N’ Roses frontman aired his grievance toward fans using drones during shows on the band’s Australian tour.
Rose shared, “Had a few drones this leg. Last night (Gold Coast Australia) was probably the most intrusive. Was a bit of a distraction as obviously someone thought it was just ok to be doing that but also it coming that close in front of the stage and then actually over and on stage.”
He continued, “According to the police, it happens more often than not lately, especially with sporting events. It’s not something we’re all that used to. A lot of impulse reactions went through everyone’s minds that after thinking about it (which when you’re live, there’s really no time to really sort things out like that) didn’t make much sense.”
Rose concluded, “People were pissed. However much fun anyone’s having, you’re still trying to stay focused and do your job and give the fans the best show you can. Anyway, we get it can be ‘fun’ to get your drone bootleg vid, but we’d appreciate it if anyone planning to be a drone pirate took the fans and the band into consideration and played with your toys somewhere else. Big thank you in advance!”
Laws related to drones vary all over the world. In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has a number of airspace restrictions where drones are not allowed to fly. For example, there are many rules related to flying drones near airports and near stadiums during certain sporting events.
On a related note: Can we recognize the level-headed response from Rose about this whole situation? Think of how a late ’80s/early ’90s Axl would’ve reacted if a drone just flew at him. Yeah, there would be broken drones everywhere!
— Axl Rose (@axlrose) November 25, 2022