Stop Chucking Stuff at Musicians: Pink Doesn’t Want Your Mam’s Ashes
On June 18th, Bebe Rexha had a phone thrown at her by a fan who apparently believed it would be ‘funny’. It’s an excuse many of us have turned to when inadvertently hurting a mate - but the key difference in Rexha’s case is that she had no clue who Nicholas Malvagna, the culprit, was.
Rexha was rushed to hospital, where she posted a photo of her bruised and bandaged face as a reminder that outside of going viral on TikTok, our actions have consequences. Instead of dissuading crowds from physically assaulting celebs, however, Malvagna’s phone throw seemed to spur them on: In the following days, Ava Max was slapped across the face during a stage invasion, Kelsea Ballerini had a bracelet thrown at her eye, and Pink was not only handed a huge wheel of brie at a gig, but also - separately - given one soul’s departed mother’s ashes mid performance.
Throwing items at concerts is not a new phenomenon: Since the days of Beatlemania, fans have thrown all sorts - from food to hotel keys to underwear - at singers. The Rolling Stones had bras thrown onstage in tribute from women who wanted to sleep with Mick Jagger.
___STEADY_PAYWALL___
Famously, Ozzy Osbourne had a bat thrown at him and was the first singer, I believe, to need a rabies shot mid-concert. Osbourne has also noted in the time since, he assumed the bat was a toy when chomping its head off, and was mid-chew when he realised it was in fact, an actual live animal that had been chucked on stage. It’s a weird and usually harmless phenomenon that represents the ongoing parasocial relationships with artists.
In 2023, the debate on parasocial relationships has been a mainstay of social media discourse. Within the public sphere and out of it, women are rarely seen as rounded humans already, but the environment of a concert appears to amplify this feeling of ownership of the person on stage.
It has been heavily documented in viral TikToks that gig etiquette has gone out of the window post-Covid, which can plausibly be chalked up to the fact we are all still figuring out how to interact with other humans, let alone how to attend shows. But paying hundreds of pounds for tickets, getting dressed up and leaving your house to throw anything - from a set of keys, to a plushie to your own phone, or your mum’s ashes is not only nuts, but insanely selfish. It ruins the concert for everyone else, not just the artist on stage. It’s a little hard to have a great time when your favourite singer has to be rushed off stage and sent to A&E (or whatever the celeb equivalent is) because someone wants to post about that time their aim was dead on in a dark space.
“Live concerts are one of the best ways to feel community with other fans and the artists we love – a ticket does not afford you “object-throwing privileges” or even access to an artist.”
What is worrying is the number of fans on Twitter who have also found humour in these incidents. And though the internet’s love of irony and the uncanny, as well as the parasocial relationships it encourages people develop with celebrities, is probably a big part of the reason why someone threw, for example, a chicken nugget at Harry Styles, we shouldn’t dismiss these moments, which at their worst can veer ito violence, as humour or banter. This is not even basic concert etiquette but basic good behaviour. When an artist is doing their job on stage, providing a service to their fans, we should appreciate that.
After a few years of missing out on live music, fans are excited to get back into action. But why do grown adults feel the need to use concerts as backgrounds for their Main Character Moment? Live concerts are one of the best ways to feel community with other fans and the artists we love – a ticket does not afford you “object-throwing privileges” or even access to an artist. If we want to continue to enjoy our favourite stars performing live in a face-to-face environment, people have to stop making their need for contact an artist’s problem.
Words: Michaela Makusha
