A bracelet thrown at a Billie Eilish concert has re-sparked this long-held debate
BY BELLA FRANCIS, IMAGE BY DREAMSTIME
The decline of concert etiquette has been a topic that crops up in headlines again and again, with superstar Billie Eilish being hit in the face with a bracelet while performing this week being the latest example. Sometimes it feels like we can’t go a week without hearing about an artist being hit with a flying object from a crowd or loud audience members having to be removed!
Aside from Billie Eilish, many other queer stars have experienced and complained about poor concert behaviour in recent years.
Bebe Rexha had to receive stitches after she was hit in the face with a mobile phone in New York in 2023, she now often performs in large glasses or safety goggles. In the same year, Lil Nas X had to pause a Stockholm concert due to a fan throwing a sex toy on stage.
The problem goes beyond flying objects, however. Back in March, American singer-songwriter Renée Rapp had to call out concert signs objectifying her body. Over on her Instagram account, Renée addressed the signs, saying: “Sometimes signs are funny and other times they make me feel like a piece of meat!”
But what has sparked this trend, and what does it mean for the future of live performance?
COVID-19
One of the main factors experts blame for this rise in disruptive behaviour is the COVID-19 pandemic. Once lockdown restrictions were lifted, serious violence in the UK rose by almost a quarter. Many blame this on a phenomenon known as “post-lockdown aggression”: caused by difficulty socially readjusting, unresolved stress, and frustrations with the restrictions. Some experts believe that this aggression explains why poor concert etiquette has particularly risen since COVID.
Artists are encouraging bad behaviour
It has been argued that artists encourage poor fan behaviour by engaging with rowdy audiences. Some artists have even made interacting with projectiles a part of their act. Harry Styles, for instance, often wears feather boas and cowboy hats and waves pride flags thrown by audience members. Meanwhile, artists such as Doja Cat, Olivia Rodrigo, and Billie Eilish have taken fans’ phones mid-concert to film themselves. As fans see this engagement, they may be taking more risks to get noticed by an artist knowing they might be successful.
Parasocial relationships
Although celebrity idolization has always been pertinent, it’s only within the last decade or two that social media has given fans unprecedented access to personal details about the performers they love. These parasocial relationships have been groundbreaking for an artist’s marketability and reach. However, the unusual amount of connection fans have with an artist they’ve never met in real life gives them an unearned sense of intimacy, which leads to a breakdown of social norms.
Carla Penna, a psychoanalyst, told the LA Times that because of this relationship, “the audience might feel entitled to join the artist in person on the stage or join the artist in a symbolic way by throwing objects that represent or symbolize themselves.”
Social media aesthetics
The number of social media users has increased from 970 million in 2010 to over 5.17 billion in July 2024.
The constant stream of other people’s lives we see through these apps has led to many users focusing on curating a positive, “aesthetic” image of themselves online in the search of peer validation and approval rather than focusing on real-life experiences or emotions.
Etiquette expert Myka Meier told The Daily Mail that “social media has definitely influenced concert behaviour, causing people to get carried away”’. The desire to capture unique moments in an effort to go viral “ultimately encourages them to behave in ways they wouldn’t usually in order to make that over-the-top video or photo”.
What should we take from this?
Although disruptive concertgoers can be annoying, following the rules yourself helps to set the precedent we all want to see going forward. If someone is being disruptive, finding security or politely asking them to turn it down might be a solution. If this doesn’t work, then if it’s not too packed moving away from the disruptors may be another way to fully enjoy your concert experience.
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