While Iron Maiden has boldly asked fans to put away their phones during their “Run for Your Lives” 50th anniversary tour in the name of artistic integrity and ‘80s nostalgia, Nickelback has announced a similar request for their own upcoming shows — but for entirely Nickelback reasons.
Iron Maiden manager Rod Smallwood recently expressed gratitude to fans who kept their phones down in Budapest, praising them for respecting the band’s retro vibe and helping maintain “an unencumbered” concert atmosphere. He even offered a parting gift to phone offenders: “I wish you nothing but a very sore arm!” – possibly the most British curse ever issued in heavy metal.
Inspired by this, Nickelback’s management team issued their own official statement:
“We too are kindly asking fans not to film during our shows,” frontman Chad Kroeger explained. “Not because we care about artistic vision or anything like that, but, like… seriously, have you seen what people say in the comments? Every time someone posts a video, the internet has another Nickelback roast-fest and honestly, our self-esteem is already hanging by a thread.”
Nickelback’s request is simple: no filming = fewer TikToks = fewer people rediscovering that they still hate Nickelback.
“We’ve tried everything,” Kroeger continued. “We changed our hair, our sound, even tried not being in Nickelback for a while — but it turns out we’re still Nickelback. The phones must go.”
Iron Maiden, meanwhile, continues to revel in their glorious cell phone-light mosh pits, even if a few rogue fans insisted on filming “The Trooper” through a grainy Snapchat filter.
“We just want fans to enjoy the show like it’s 1985,” said Smallwood. “And no one brought phones to a Maiden gig back then — mostly because the phones weighed 14 pounds and only bankers had them.”
Meanwhile, Nickelback is reportedly considering offering audience members free flip phones upon entry — not for retro vibes, but because you can’t record in 4K on a Motorola Razr.
No word yet if Creed plans to join this anti-phone movement, but sources say Scott Stapp has been spotted practicing a speech that starts with “Put down the phone… and raise your hands with arms wide open.”
