Steve Lacy on smashing fan’s camera on stage: “A lot of kids don’t know what concert etiquette is”
Steve Lacy has recalled his decision to smash a fan’s camera on stage, and reaffirmed that he refuses to apologise to those with bad “concert etiquette”.
The incident in question took place at one of his shows in New Orleans last October, when a member of the audience hurled their disposable camera at him. Upon the camera landing on the stage next to him, the American singer-songwriter proceeded to destroy it and refuse to apologise for doing so.
Now, coming up to one year since the incident, Lacy has recalled the moment again in a new interview, and insists that he stands by his refusal to apologise for concertgoers with poor “etiquette”.
“I had to accept that this is how these kids are,” he said to Variety, discussing the incident for the first time since he released an initial statement about it.
“I was pissed at first — they want so much. ‘Can you do this?’, ‘Can you do that?’, ‘I’m gonna throw this up here for you’, ‘I love you’… But I don’t see them being wrong for it anymore,” he added. “As much as it fucking annoys me sometimes, they’re just young. A lot of these kids — it’s their first concert, so they don’t even know what concert etiquette is.”
@katloveshellokitty this was so unexpected #stevelacy #giveyoutheworldtour
The incident was just one example of the worrying trend, where artists have had their shows interrupted by members of the audience throwing objects at them.
Other incidents in recent months include Drake being hit twice by items hurled at him from the crowd during his tour with 21 Savage, P!nk being left confused after a fan tossed their dead mother’s ashes onto her stage in London, Harry Styles being hit in the eye in Vienna, and Ava Max being slapped in the face by someone who ran onto the stage during a gig in Los Angeles.
The most concerning of which was the incident at one of Bebe Rehxa’s shows, when the singer was left needing stitches after an audience member threw a phone at her face because he thought it would be “funny”.
Shortly after the incident with the disposable camera took place, Lacy took to Instagram to call on his fans to stop throwing things at him while he is on stage, and explain how the fad leads to him losing sight of “the beauty of the connection” with his crowd.
“Shoutout to the people not throwing disposable cameras at me and just coming to catch a vibe and connect. I had a really good time in NOLA last night. I hate that the beauty of the connection I have with so many people in the crowd gets lost when something negative happens,” he wrote (via NME). “I don’t believe I owe anyone an apology — maybe I could’ve reacted better? Sure.”
Elsewhere in his new interview, he recalled how people were initially mad at him for his response, however, in light of recent events, they have now begun to understand his frustration with the incident.
“People were pissed at me for it, but now they’re like, ‘He was fuckin’ right — y’all shoulda listened to Steve!’” he said. “I didn’t apologise for that shit because I’m not wrong… These moments just go viral. As soon as anything has virality to it, it’s like that’s everything you’ve done. That’s what I hated most about that moment.”
Highlighting the worrying trend, NME explored why fans may want to hurl objects at their favourite performers, but, additionally, how it negatively impacts live shows.
“The desire for a memorable one-off connection with the pop gods is understandable, particularly in an age when the wealthiest among us can virtually buy a meet-and-spoon with them before the show,” it read. “But it shouldn’t need to be said that risking their personal well-being, the gig itself and a bouncer’s boot in the face for your troubles isn’t worth any amount of TikTok notoriety.”
“We’ve entered an era where interactions between fan and artist need to revert to respectful boundaries,” it added. “It’s a performance, not a baby shower or disorderly selfie queue, so let the stars get on with dazzling you without the underlying frisson of warzone.”
The post Steve Lacy on smashing fan’s camera on stage: “A lot of kids don’t know what concert etiquette is” appeared first on NME.
Liberty Dunworth
NME
