Top 10 Artists That Got Injured on Stage

 
Word to the wise: if your signature rock n’ roll move is to throw your bass guitar in the air and catch it, make sure you have the latter part down pat. Unfortunately for Nirvana bass guitarist Krist Novoselic, who had performed said stunt on numerous occasions, things didn’t exactly go as planned during a 1992 MTV Video Music Awards performance. Novoselic tossed his bass high into the air only to have it land on his head. Dazed and confused, he stumbled off stage where, with a little help from paramedics and Queen guitarist Brian May, he was given a bandage for his wound and cold glass of champagne. Not such a bad ending after all!  





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#9: Big Boi

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Big Boi rose to prominence in the late 90s and early 2000s as one part of the Southern hip-hip duo Outkast. He’d go on to have a successful career as a solo artist but, truth be told, that’s not what we’re here to discuss. No, we’re here because in May of 2013 he blew out his knee on stage while performing at the Summer Camp Fest in Illinois. The accident was innocent enough, but clearly did some serious damage, as a video of the incident clearly shows Big Boi wincing in pain and hopping around on one leg. It was later discovered that he’d torn his patella. 

 




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#8: Keith Moon

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Legendary drummer Keith Moon was well versed in the art of destruction. As members of the English rock band The Who, Moon and band mate Pete Townshend developed a reputation for their on-stage antics; mostly their affinity for smashing their instruments at the end of their shows. However, this habit led to both of them sustaining injuries during a performance on “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” in 1967. At the end of the show Moon kicked over his drum kit as per usual. Except this time it was loaded with explosives.  The ensuing blast logged a piece of cymbal into his arm and permanently affected Townshend’s hearing.  Now that’s going out with a bang! 
 
  
 

 
Aerosmith front man Steven Tyler knows all too well what happens when you fall off of a stage, having done it twice! While on the Guitar Hero Aerosmith Tour in 2009, Tyler danced his way right off of the stage and broke his shoulder while also sustaining injuries to his head and neck. The second fall occurred during a show in Toronto, when guitarist Joe Perry gave him a slight shove and accidentally knocked him off of the stage. Thankfully he was okay. The strangest thing about Tyler’s two tumbles? They both occurred during a performance of the song “Love in an Elevator”! Maybe it’s time to cut that one from the setlist.




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#6: James Hetfield

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Pyrotechnics are all well and good until they explode in your face. Such was the case for Metallica lead singer James Hetfield during a performance at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium in 1992. During a rendition of “Fade to Black” Hetfield became confused as to where he was supposed to stand and accidentally walked directly into a pyrotechnics blast! The flames engulfed the left side of his body leaving second and third degree burns on his face, arm and hand . As horrific as it sounds  Hetfield wasn’t out for very long, and was back performing with the band only 17 days after the incident.





 
Legendary punk rocker Patti Smith was involved in one of the most brutal on-stage incidents in music history. While on tour in 1977 the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer fell 15 feet into an orchestra pit that was made of, wait for it…concrete! All told Smith ended up breaking a number of vertebrae in her neck, causing her to spend months undergoing physical therapy treatment. Smith’s doctor clearly had some experience with musicians, as when she went to see him he told her “not to worry, it happens to everybody.”


 
 

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#4: Marilyn Manson

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Shock rocker Marilyn Manson sustained an injury while performing at New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom on September 30th, 2017. Near the end of his show two large prop guns fell on him resulting in the musician breaking his fibula.  He was quickly rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors inserted a plate and ten screws into the broken bone. Video footage of the incident is quite jarring, as an unsuspecting Manson appears to have his leg crushed beneath the weight of the massive prop. It was a close call that could have definitely been much worse!



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#3: Dave Grohl

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You know what they say; the show must go on! During a concert in Gothenburg, Sweden Foo Fighters front man Dave Grohl took a tumble off of the stage and broke his leg. Incredibly, Grohl returned a short while later sporting a cast on the injured appendage and finished the show! While the band was forced to cancel a few of their upcoming shows Grohl wasn’t going to let the pesky injury derail the entire tour. So, he designed a massive throne for himself that allowed him to continue playing despite the injury to his leg. Talk about commitment to your craft!





 
Grammy award winning singer and actor Meat Loaf has been performing on stage for decades. Which made it all the more surprising when he fell off stage and broke his leg during a show in Ottawa. Oddly enough, this was not his only on-stage incident. He collapsed on stage during a 2003 performance in London and again during a 2016 performance in Edmonton. The first time it was because of an undiagnosed heart condition, while the second was chalked up to dehydration. Maybe it’s time the “Bat Out of Hell” singer took it easy!




Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

Pink


Sid Wilson  






 
One of the most influential soul singers of the 20th century, Curtis Mayfield’s life would never be the same after the event that occurred on August 13th, 1990. Moments before his show at Brooklyn’s Wingate Field was set to begin an overhead scaffold of lights dislodged and fell, landing on top of the Chicago native. The blow would paralyze him from the neck down. Miraculously, Mayfield continued to sing and compose songs up until his death in 1999. He accomplished this by recording vocals line-by-line while lying down. If that doesn’t inspire you to get out there and pursue your dreams, we don’t know what will!





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