The Killers are apologizing to their fans after getting pelted with boos at a recent concert in the country of Georgia for bringing a Russian fan onstage and calling him their “brother.”
The rock band, led by singer Brandon Flowers, invited a fan up onstage at their Shekvetili gig Tuesday to play the drums — a tradition the group’s been doing for a while. This fan, however, claimed he was from Russia … something the Georgian crowd wasn’t thrilled with.
Brandon and co. got a swarm of negative responses instantly, prompting him to suggest the man was the country’s brother — which set them off even more. After more booing, he asked if he wasn’t their brother, being from America … and got more boos.
Mariam Rigvava
The crowd got pretty pissed, and many folks in the crowd reportedly left in protest … and the band offered up an apology after the rough show, saying, “Good people of Georgia, it was never our intention to offend anyone!”
Responding to the “brother” comment, they add, “We recognize that a comment, meant to suggest that all of The Killers’ audience and fans are ‘brothers and sisters,’ could be misconstrued. We did not mean to upset anyone and we apologize.”
For those unaware, Georgia gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but has been met with conflict over the years from Russia, including an invasion of the country in 2008.