Lady Gaga, Drake, Pink and other singers have been hit with – and sometimes injured by – a bizarre collection of items including food, jewelry and electronic devices, thrown by people in the audience during performances.
At least 14 incidents have been reported in the past 12 months. The latest involves Cardi B, who threw her microphone at an unidentified fan after the fan tossed a drink at her Saturday.
Onstage in London, Pink was handed a wheel of cheese by a fan one day and a plastic bag purportedly containing the cremated ashes of another fan’s mother the next.
But performers are also being hurt. Bebe Rexha was hospitalized after being hit in the face by a cellphone. Kelsea Ballerini was hit in the eye by a bracelet. And Harry Styles, who’s had items thrown at him on three separate occasions, was hit in the eye by someone throwing Skittles candy.
Some of the item-throwers have been arrested but the trend continues. Here’s a look at what performers have endured:
Cardi B | Drink
July 29, 2023:Cardi B throws her microphone at a fan who threw a drink at her while she was onstage at Drai’s Beachclub in Las Vegas Saturday. The video has been viewed nearly 70 million times.
Harry Styles | Unidentified object
July 8, 2023: Harry Styles is hit in the eye by an unidentified object thrown onstage by a fan during a performance in Vienna.
Drake | Cellphone
July 5, 2023:Drake is hit on the arm by a cellphone thrown onstage by a fan at the United Center in Chicago.
Lil Nas X | Sex toy
July 1: 2023: Lil Nas X dodges an unidentified sex toy thrown onstage during a performance at Lollapalooza Stockholm in Sweden.
Kelsea Ballerini | Bracelet
June 28, 2023: Kelsea Ballerini briefly stops singing after she is hit in the eye by a bracelet thrown onstage by a fan during a performance in Boise, Idaho. Later on Instagram, she tells fans what happened.
Pink | Bag of ashes
June 25, 2023: The day after Pink is handed a wheel of cheese, a fan throws a plastic bag of what’s reported to be the ashes of their mother during a song at BST Hyde Park. “This is your mum?” Pink asks the fan. “I don’t know how to feel about this.” She puts the bag on the stage and finishes the song.
Pink | Cheese
June 24, 2023: A fan gives Pink a wheel of brie cheese during her performance at the BST Hyde Park music festival in London.
Ava Max | Slapped
June 20, 2023: Singer Ava Max says she was slapped onstage by a man during a performance at the Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles. He was removed by security.
Bebe Rexha | Cellphone
June 18, 2023: Bebe Rexha is hospitalized after being hit near the eye by a cellphone thrown by an audience member during a performance at The Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York. A 27-year-old New Jersey man is charged with assault.
Harry Styles | Chicken nuggets
Aug. 27, 2022: Harry Styles dodges chicken nuggets tossed at him by a fan at a performance in Madison Square Garden in New York. “I don’t eat meat,” Styles says later.
Harry Styles | Skittles
Nov. 14, 2022: Styles is hit in the eye by a handful of Skittles candy thrown by someone in the audience while singing in his “Love on Tour” stop in Los Angeles.
Steve Lacy | Disposable camera
Oct. 21, 2022: Steve Lacy is hit by a camera thrown onstage at the Orpheum Theater in New Orleans.
Lady Gaga | Stuffed toy
Aug. 11, 2022: Lady Gaga is nearly hit by a stuffed toy thrown onstage at a performance in Toronto. She ignores it and finishes her song. The toy is believed to be a Dr. Simi mascot figure from a Mexican pharmacy. Other celebrities have had the toys tossed at them.
Kid Cudi | Water bottles
July 22, 2022: Kid Cudi walks offstage after people in the crowd throw water bottles at him during the Rolling Loud Festival in Miami. Cudi had replaced Kanye West as the headline performer.
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SOURCE USA TODAY Network reporting and research; Associated Press
