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Luke Bryan didn’t take kindly to a fan throwing a ball at his face during a recent concert.
According to a TikTok video captured by a fan, the American Idol judge, 49, was in the middle of performing his 2011 song “Country Girl (Shake It for Me)” during an outdoor show at the North Dakota State Fair on Saturday, July 26, when he was struck directly in the face with a small ball thrown from the crowd.
Bryan kept his composure and continued singing, but later told A Taste of Country that “one person just took [the fun atmosphere] too far.”
“We see it. Every other entertainer out there is getting stuff — you get stuff thrown at ya,” he said on Thursday, July 30. “You hope that you can see who did it.”
Bryan then admitted, “I mean, if I saw him throw it, I could have gone right to him. I probably would have jumped right off in there.”
However, Bryan conceded that it was probably best to ignore the incident so it wouldn’t disrupt the concert vibe for everyone else.
“If I jump off in there … there were a lot of little kids down there,” he pointed out. “At that point, if I’d even stopped it and pointed somebody out, it kills the vibe of the show.”
Unfortunately, Bryan is far from the first musician to be struck with a flying object while on stage in recent years. Billie Eilish was performing her track “What Was I Made For?” in Glendale, Arizona in December 2024 when a fan threw a piece of jewelry at her face, forcing her to pause performing as she realized what happened.
Kelsea Ballerini walked off stage during a Boise, Idaho, show in June 2023 after being hit in the face with an unidentified object. She later urged fans to have more respect for artists in an Instagram Story.
“We all have triggers and layers of fears way deeper than what is shown, and that’s why I walked offstage to calm down and make sure myself, band and crew, and the crowd all felt safe to continue,” she explained. “That’s all I ever want is for shows to feel like a safe place for us all.”
Earlier this month, Bryan had much more light-hearted experience on his Country Song Came On Tour when he poked fun at the Coldplay Kiss Cam controversy. (Astronomer’s married CEO Andy Byron and the company’s chief people officer, Kristin Cabot, were caught cuddling on the jumbotron at Coldplay’s show in Foxboro, Massachusetts, on July 16. In the wake of a viral scandal, Byron and Cabot both left the tech firm.)
Bryan was the first major act to react to the viral sensation on stage when he offered a unique dedication at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, on July 17.
“We’re gonna shine our cameras on anybody,” Bryan announced. “Who’s here with their secretary tonight? Hey, it’s gotta be someone way up there.”
As the camera scanned through the crowd, Bryan started playing his song “Strip It Down” and joked: “Oh, yeah! There they are … Don’t get caught tonight! Do not get caught tonight.”
Bryan’s Country Song Came On Tour wraps up in Dallas, Texas, at the Dos Equis Pavilion on September 12.
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