Billie Joe Armstrong and his bandmates are criticized for taking the stage after the disturbing incident, but the band insists they didn't know about it until after they finished their set.
- Jul 9, 2017
AceShowbiz - Green Day was criticized for continuing their performance after a man fell to his death in front of thousands of stunned concertgoers waiting for their headlining set. The band and the event organizer were accused of being insensitive for resuming the festivity so soon after the horrific incident.
Pedro Aunion Monroy, 42, performed a dangerous areal stunt at the Mad Cool Festival in Madrid, Spain on Friday night, June 7. He was inside a box dangling from a crane around 100 feet high above the ground. He was wearing harness, but the rope apparently broke when he plummeted to the ground.
Paramedics rushed to the scene to save his life, but he died soon due to the serious injuries he sustained from the fall. Despite the disturbing accident witnessed by the whole crowd, Billie Joe Armstrong and his bandmates took the stage as the organizer decided to continue on with the festival.
A disgusted concertgoer tweeted, "Ashamed of you. An artist died just 20 meters from you and you still play. Worst band on the planet." Another slammed the band, "Im leaving the madcool after an acrobat died mid show, and noone in the organization said anything. GreenDay shouldn't be playing right now."
British actor Adrian Randle who was among the crowd also criticized the organizers and chose to walk out of the festival following the incident. "I couldn't in good faith stay to watch Green Day perform after that," he explained. "Thoughts go out to the family of the performer."
In their own defense, Green Day claimed they didn't know about the incident until after they finished their set. "We just got off stage at Mad Cool Festival to disturbing news. A very brave artist named Pedro lost his life tonight in a tragic accident," they tweeted. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends."
We just got off stage at Mad Cool Festival to disturbing news. A very brave artist named Pedro lost his life tonight in a tragic accident
â Green Day (@GreenDay) July 8, 2017
Meanwhile, the organizers defended their decision to continue with the event. "Mad Cool Festival regrets the terrible accident that the aerial dancer suffered during the second day of the festival. For security reasons, the festival decided to continue with its programming. We send our most sincere condolences to all his family. Tomorrow Saturday 8, during the festival, we will render a heartfelt tribute to the artist."
