The Killers Issues Apology After Receiving Flak For Bringing Russian Fan Onstage In Georgia

The Killers aren't exactly seeing things bright lately as they received flak and backlash for bringing a fan of Russian descent to a concert in the country Georgia.

Bringing a fan onstage wasn't actually an unprecedented move by the band as it was actually their longstanding concert tradition, but it seemed like the etiquette was actually inappropriate, for the country at least.

The Killers Georgia Concert Backlash

Unbeknownst to many, The Killers has a "longstanding tradition" of inviting their fans onstage to perform their song, "For Reasons Unknown," People Magazine reported. During their concert in the country of Georgia in Eastern Europe

"We don't know the etiquette of this land but this guy's a Russian. You OK with a Russian coming up here?" he asked the crowd on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023, at the Black Sea Arena, in Georgia.

Shortly after, he was booed by the crowd and some even walked out in protest, as BBC noted.

"You can't recognize if someone's your brother? He's not your brother? We all separate on the borders of our countries? ... Am I not your brother, being from America?" he asked the audience, as seen in now-viral videos.

At one point even, Flowers tried to make sense of the situation and tried to salvage it while being booed. He told the crowd that "one of the things that we have come to appreciate about being in this band is it brings people together."

While her intentions are indeed pure, Flowers might need a little crash course on geopolitics.

Although they're neighboring countries, Georgia has a long history of tension with Russians. It gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but it invaded the country in 2008 - up until now, it still occupies part of it. Tensions between the two countries also increased as some Russians emigrated to the country following the Russian-Ukraine war last year. (via BBC)

The Killers Issues Apology Over Georgia Concert

"Good people of Georgia, it was never our intention to offend anyone! We have a longstanding tradition of inviting people to play drums and it seemed from the stage that the initial response from the crowd indicated that they were okay with tonight's audience participation member coming onstage with us," The Killers said in a Facebook post.

The band then said that they recognized that Brandon's statements could be misconstrued as they did not mean to absent anyone, and sincerely apologize for what happened.

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Brandon Flowers, The Killers