Last summer, Harry Styles was pelted with some (apparently too many) chicken nuggets while performing as part of his 2022 residency at Madison Square Garden in New York York. The moment sparked a hilarious interaction between Styles and the food thrower, and it soon went viral — the most exchange with the “Satellite” crooner among his multi-year ” Love on Tour”. The conversation went out from different angles across the pages of TikTok For You, and finally got to pick up news – including this service. It was just the latest in a string of interesting things that fans have thrown at Styles during his performance. What started as animated plastic sunglasses, plushes, and flags making their way to the stage, had turned into the weird. And now, it has become downright dangerous for Styles and many of his peers.
Earlier this month, headlines were made because Bebe Rexha was hospitalized after a fan smashed her cell phone at her concert at NYC’s Pier 17. Rexha ended up needing medical attention, and the man was arrested. He told police he threw the phone because he thought it would be “funny,” NBC News reported. Days later, Ava Max fall that a fan went on stage and physically assaulted her while she was performing at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. Max wrote, “He hit me so hard it scratched the inside of my eye. He’s never coming to a show again 😡😡 thank you fans for being amazing tonight in LA though!! ❤️”
The attack on the behavior of the linebackers continued, however. This week, country singer Kelsea Ballerini left her stage in Boise, Idaho, after being hit in the eye by a friendship band thrown at her from the crowd . She wrote on her Instagram story that the moment “scared me more than it hurt me. Pink’s two-night run in London this month prompted even more unusual offerings for musicians: a wheel of cheese (smelly, but okay) and, apparently, the ashes of an attendee’s mother, the Los Angeles Times reported .
None of these issues, apparently, were welcomed by the player. And it should be obvious why. Charlie Puth wrote on Twitter this week: “This trend of throwing things at actors while they’re on stage has to end. (Bebe, Ava, AND NOW Kelsea Ballerini…) It is so disrespectful and very dangerous. Please enjoy the music I wish you. ”
Of course, misbehavior at concerts is nothing new. Neither throw things: the bra-throwing fan joke is there for a reason. However, it is definitely something that is becoming a major trend. It is difficult, exactly, to identify what makes people pelt actors. Many of my peers have been using their platforms to ask the same question this week. I mean, for one, it’s not cheap to see a concert these days. Taylor Swift fans, in particular, have shelled out thousands for a coveted ticket to her Eras tour. Why, then, risk a performer’s safety and the ability to continue the show you spent your paycheck on?
There is, of course, the pandemic factor. It’s clear that years without live shows have affected people’s understanding of concert etiquette. And we can not ignore the beginning of parasocial relationships thanks to the opportunity that the Internet gives the layman to their favorite stars. In a USA Today study of these actors’ attacks, Maryanne Fisher, a professor of psychology at the University of St. Mary’s in Canada, says, “The only explanation that makes sense is the influence of social media. often post their personal lives and details on social media – more than ever – and fans feel like they know them. ”
The hours spent scrolling through an artist’s social media profile create a sense of familiarity with the star.
The hours spent scrolling through an artist’s social media profile create a sense of familiarity with the star. “Why wouldn’t Ballerini want this carpet, right now? I know she loves them,” perhaps the waver? Many seem to forget that although Pink is no stranger to you, you are strangers to Pink.
We can not forget also, the continuous search for virality. As usual, people are looking for their 15 minutes of fame – now it just comes in the form of a 10-second video with 1 million views. In an interview with CNN in 2018, Yalda T. Uhls, then an author and assistant professor of psychology at UCLA, noted that this new kind of fame is possible measurement Uhls said that in “today’s world, you can measure it by how many likes and how many followers and how many retweets.” A survey given to new UCLA students each year showed that, at the time, young people were more interested in getting famous. A viral video of a concert interaction isn’t just proof that their favorite performer noticed them – it’s also an opportunity to keep getting noticed.
Regardless of the reason, it may have to be explained like this: you are at work, sitting in front of your computer, writing away from the safety of your cubicle. As you work, someone – a stranger – starts throwing various objects at you. Some are hurt by impact. Would you still focus on your screen? Maybe not. It’s even more likely that you’d start to lose the sense of safety you felt sitting down in that cubicle every day, trying to do your job.
I won’t mince words in my conclusion: stop throwing things at actors. Hanging hats, t-shirts, water bottles, human remains, cell phones – whatever it is, they stay with you once you enter a musician’s workspace . If fans continue to put artists in these unsafe situations, I expect we will start to lose any access to them, altogether.
