Billy Strings Rocks a Hockey Helmet on Stage 1 Day After Being Hit in the Head with Object Thrown by Fan
Billy Strings Rocks a Hockey Helmet on Stage 1 Day After Being Hit in the Head with Object Thrown by Fan
Rachel DeSantisTue, August 11, 2026 at 6:55 PM UTC
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Billy Strings performing in Charlotte, N.C. in October 2024.Credit: John Shearer/Getty -
Billy Strings wore a hockey helmet on stage after being hit by an object during a previous show
Fans throwing objects at performers has become a troubling trend with incidents involving artists like Bebe Rexha and Eric Clapton
Strings’ upcoming album So Much for Goodbyes is inspired by the loss of his mother and explores themes of grief and connection
Billy Strings knows how to handle a stage mishap with a bit of good humor.
The Grammy-winning bluegrass star, 33, was performing in Fishers, Ind. on Aug. 6 when he was hit in the head by something that appeared to be thrown from the crowd.
When he returned for another show at the Fishers Event Center the next night, he came prepared — this time with a hockey helmet on his head.
Strings kicked off the show by coming out in an Indy Fuel helmet, a minor league hockey team based in Fishers. He didn’t comment on his new accessory, but did share video of himself backstage jamming while rocking the headgear.
Fan video shared to TikTok captured the moment that Strings was hit with the object, which seemed to bounce off his head and land on the stage.
“Well what the hell, man?” he said to the crowd as they started to boo. “Maybe I shouldn’t have [come] back [to Fishers]. You know, why the f--- would you throw something at me? Is your d--- really that small?”
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Strings continued, “I was just getting ready to say how happy I am to be here and I love you guys and all this s---, and then you throw something and it hits me right in the f---ing head.”
Fans throwing objects at artists on stage has become something of a pattern in recent years. In May, Eric Clapton was struck by an object thrown by a concertgoer in Madrid, and subsequently skipped his encore.
Billy Strings performing in September 2025 in Minneapolis.Credit: Gary Miller/Getty
Other notable incidents include Bebe Rexhabeing hit in the face with a phone in 2023, and Riley Green needing stitches after a phone thrown by a fan hit him in the ear earlier this year.
Strings is gearing up for the release of his new album So Much for Goodbyes, which will come out on Aug. 28.
The record is inspired by the loss of his mother Debra, who died of a drug overdose last June at age 64.
“To me, it was this sad thing, this idea that I didn’t get to say goodbye,” he told The New York Times. “But when I told my manager about the title, he’s like, ‘I like that because it’s not really goodbye. She’s in everything and she’s everywhere.’ So I like the idea that it can be taken both ways: So much for goodbyes, like I didn’t get to say goodbye, but also so much for goodbyes because it’s not really goodbye.’”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
