For those of you who have met Green Day (or got on stage during a show), tell us the story.

[Karlachu]

Just now, Billie Hoe said:

No you're definitely not the only one! When he asked for people to come on stage during the Emirates show I was being very quiet and tried to make myself as small as possible, even though I wasn't even barrier or anywhere near it. Kinda like you avoid eye contact when your teacher starts randomly calling people.  I'm scared I'd make a complete fool out of myself, mess up lyrics or annoy them somehow or how I would have to refuse if he'd tell me to crowd surf or how the audience would let me drop if I did it... I keep imagining horror scenarios

Oh gosh crowd surfing sounds so terrifying. I feel like i would jump and either not make it to the barrier LOL) or they wouldn't even catch me...but i do think i would be so caught up in the moment, i wouldn't even worry about it...i mean...i would get to be on stage with me favorite band!! That's crazy enough to not even be able to believe. I hope it happens someday. lol

[TimmyChunks]

2 hours ago, Billie Hoe said:

No you're definitely not the only one! When he asked for people to come on stage during the Emirates show I was being very quiet and tried to make myself as small as possible, even though I wasn't even barrier or anywhere near it. Kinda like you avoid eye contact when your teacher starts randomly calling up people.  I'm scared I'd make a complete fool out of myself, mess up lyrics or annoy them somehow or how I would have to refuse if he'd tell me to crowd surf or how the audience would let me drop if I did it... I keep imagining horror scenarios

But honestly, I would be scared shitless of meeting them outside of a concert too. This almost happened to me like 3 times in 3 days after the London show (Bowie (?) exhibit, Heathrow airport, Frankfurt) and I imagined how I would go up to them, like... If I saw them I would probably cry first and then awkwardly follow them like some kind of stalker because I would be too shy to speak to them or ask them for a photo/autograph. Only then to be tackled by their bodyguard and die or something because I was behaving like a stalker. If that wouldn't kill me, I would die out of embarrassment. But I would also kick myself for not talking to them. But I would want to leave them alone and give them privacy. But also I would want a photo. It's a dilemma.  Like I said, horror scenario. I can already imagine myself walking up behind them and clearing my throat or something and then not getting a word out and having them stare at me like the fucking idiot I am. 

Maybe I would yell hi and run away before they get the chance to say something.

I can completely relate and definitely felt the same way- having been an enormous fan since '94, I was hesitant (ok, more like scared) to talk to them at first, but thankfully my wife said to me, "when are you ever going to have this opportunity again? You'd be crazy to pass this up!". And she was right- I haven't had a chance to meet them since, and we would never, ever have been able to request our wedding song and have it played. It was truly special. When the time comes, take the opportunity and meet them, it's easier than it seems and one of the most memorable experiences you'll ever have.

Truthfully, I think I was afraid that meeting these guys would be a letdown (what if they were rude or jerks, for example?) and kind of ruin my love for the band. In fact, the experience was the opposite- it made the connection even more personal.

Good luck- I hope you have the opportunity soon!

 

 

[belinda jane]

4 hours ago, Maid Meringue said:

I'd love to meet them outside of a concert, but am I the only one who does not want to be pulled on stage?

For those who have been on stage, how were you able to get back to your spot? If you're a bigger person, how were you able to get over the barricade, and then jump into the crowd afterwards without crushing anyone?

i didn't get my spot back, but honestly i did not care.
i ended up running back through the pit and being second row in front of mike, which was good enough for me! i had just gotten on stage with them! hahaha.

[PursuitOfEpicness]

1 hour ago, belinda jane said:

i didn't get my spot back, but honestly i did not care.
i ended up running back through the pit and being second row in front of mike, which was good enough for me! i had just gotten on stage with them! hahaha.

were you with people? were they like "where'd she go??" haha

[belinda jane]

5 minutes ago, XPursuitOfEpicnessX said:

were you with people? were they like "where'd she go??" haha

i was with a group, but met up with them afterwards haha. i don't think they were too concerned with my where abouts and knew i was in my happy place

[bjafan129]

I almost got on stage at the House of Blues during Longview, Billie pointed at my sign and said 'You know it' and then saw my friend who he ended up bringing up. But I did meet Billie's mom and Adrienne inside the House of Blues when they were walking to get a drink. We talked for maybe 15 seconds before other people recognized them and stormed up. I then met Jason, Jason and Jeff at the Rock Hall induction, they were being taken to their seats by an escort and again only talked for about 10 seconds before they pushed me away.  Then back in 2013, Mike liked and commented on my Instagram post of my version of Blue saying "Holy double take Batman!"  

[Jon Benjamin]

10 minutes ago, bjafan129 said:

I almost got on stage at the House of Blues during Longview, Billie pointed at my sign and said 'You know it' and then saw my friend who he ended up bringing up. But I did meet Billie's mom and Adrienne inside the House of Blues when they were walking to get a drink. We talked for maybe 15 seconds before other people recognized them and stormed up. I then met Jason, Jason and Jeff at the Rock Hall induction, they were being taken to their seats by an escort and again only talked for about 10 seconds before they pushed me away.  Then back in 2013, Mike liked and commented on my Instagram post of my version of Blue saying "Holy double take Batman!"  

Are you in The Underbelly?

[UNICORN VOMIT]

I met Tre at soundwave - had a quit chat - I also stood with BJ & Mike out back at soundwave but I couldn't say a thing. I just stood there going omg wtf don't say anything stupid - you idiot say something😔

[greendayatx]

Met em all a ton of times. Got shitfaced with them after the show at the Uptown, Got shitfaced with them at Toots Tavern in Crockett a couple times...met them all at 1,2,3,4 go records. Billie likes taking my requests for songs all the time at shows. 

Hung out with Mike at a Frustrators show, and drank beers with him before a Pinhead Gunpowder show. At said Pinhead Gunpowder show at Gilman, i was taking a piss and Billie came in and pissed next to me. He said "I cant play with a bladder full of beer man!" I just laughted and said "Wanna play swords?" 

 

They are just normal people. Stop fanning out kids. 

[.Holly]

14 hours ago, Maid Meringue said:

For those who have been on stage, how were you able to get back to your spot? If you're a bigger person, how were you able to get over the barricade, and then jump into the crowd afterwards without crushing anyone?

I stage-dived back into the crowd, and was immediately hauled back over the barriers by security and made to walk round to the back of standing. Managed to work my way to pretty close to the front though and losing my spot was definitely worth it!!

14 hours ago, Karlachu said:

Oh gosh crowd surfing sounds so terrifying. I feel like i would jump and either not make it to the barrier LOL) or they wouldn't even catch me...but i do think i would be so caught up in the moment, i wouldn't even worry about it...i mean...i would get to be on stage with me favorite band!! That's crazy enough to not even be able to believe. I hope it happens someday. lol

Yeah you're right. I was so full of adrenaline that I didn't even think about the crowd not catching me when I jumped. Also when Billie tells you to do a stage dive, you fucking do a stage dive

[madafaka]

I got on stage to sing Longview at Emirates Stadium in 2013. Considering that I was pretty off to the side of the stage, it is pretty amazing that he picked me. I did wave my hands like a mad man though, so it might not have been pure luck 

I got pulled over the barrier by that HUGE bodyguard that they have hanging around at shows. In that moment when I was grabbed under the arms and pulled over the barrier like a child, I've never felt so small... which was contrasted a few seconds later when I got on stage and walked towards Billie Joe, which was a moment where I've never felt taller. He's so damn small you wouldn't believe it!

Anyways, we hugged it out, and I got a cue-in for the lyrics - which didn't keep me from fucking up the verse moments later. What I sang went a little something like this: "I sit around and watch the phone but no one's calling/ I sure as hehhh... call me what you will" and then grabbed it from there. Pretty proud of myself for realizing I'd made a mistake, getting back on the right track, and not having a meltdown over it! Looking back at footage from the concert, it is hilarious to see Billie Joe totally panicking when I fucked up, and trying to run to me, but I was too much in the moment to even notice him.

I jumped around a bit during the chorus, did some chanting during the outtro, jumped off Tre's platform, and then did a crowd surf with reckless abandon. What you won't see in videos of people crowdsurfing, is just how long it can actually go on for. Green Day went from Longview straight into Going To Pasalaqua, and I'm not lying, I was crowdsurfing for the majority of that song. I got carried all the way back, and not until the density of the crowd were too small to support my weight, did I get back on the ground. It is one of the most surreal moments of my life. Enjoying almost a whole song while being carried by hundreds of people, just moments after having been on stage singing with your childhood heroes.

The less glorious part of it was the last half of the concert from the back of the stadium. Needless to say my hype-level exceeded that of the back half of the crowd combined, so it was close to torture not being able to get back in front, but worth it of course. I ended up in some sort of dance circle/mosh pit when I managed to push myself a little bit closer to the stage, and spend the rest of the concert there.

I got recognized about three seperate times outside the stadium, which was pretty wild as well 

[Khaleesi.]

15 hours ago, Maid Meringue said:

I'd love to meet them outside of a concert, but am I the only one who does not want to be pulled on stage?

For those who have been on stage, how were you able to get back to your spot? If you're a bigger person, how were you able to get over the barricade, and then jump into the crowd afterwards without crushing anyone?

the security guard just plopped me right back in my spot

[BilIie Joe Armstrong]

1 hour ago, greendayatx said:

Met em all a ton of times. Got shitfaced with them after the show at the Uptown, Got shitfaced with them at Toots Tavern in Crockett a couple times...met them all at 1,2,3,4 go records. Billie likes taking my requests for songs all the time at shows. 

Hung out with Mike at a Frustrators show, and drank beers with him before a Pinhead Gunpowder show. At said Pinhead Gunpowder show at Gilman, i was taking a piss and Billie came in and pissed next to me. He said "I cant play with a bladder full of beer man!" I just laughted and said "Wanna play swords?" 

 

They are just normal people. Stop fanning out kids. 

 Is that you, Seagull? 

[dirnt286]

1 hour ago, greendayatx said:

Met em all a ton of times. Got shitfaced with them after the show at the Uptown, Got shitfaced with them at Toots Tavern in Crockett a couple times...met them all at 1,2,3,4 go records. Billie likes taking my requests for songs all the time at shows. 

Hung out with Mike at a Frustrators show, and drank beers with him before a Pinhead Gunpowder show. At said Pinhead Gunpowder show at Gilman, i was taking a piss and Billie came in and pissed next to me. He said "I cant play with a bladder full of beer man!" I just laughted and said "Wanna play swords?" 

 

They are just normal people. Stop fanning out kids. 

Where did you drink after the uptown show? Nice that the venue came back after being closed for a bit. Haven't been back since it reopened.

Used to live in Oakland. Been to all those places a bunch. Toots is solid.

[BobbyD1982]

The boys were playing a show at Iriving Plaza back in 2011. It was a "free" show where u had to win tickets for (I didn't win, so I had to buy an over inflated ticket online from some douche bag capitalizing on the band)

I went to the show alone, and while waiting outside I made friends with this older guy who was taking his daughter and this younger dude who was hanging out with us.

low and behold, the older guy was stopped by the head of security for Irving, they apparently grew up with each other. The older guy intro'd me as his co-worker, his daughter and the younger guy as her BF to the head of security.

When it was time to start letting people in, the security guard lifted the velvet ropes for us and ushered us in past the ticket booth (seriously I got in for free, but i still paid for the damn ticket online)

the security gaurd continued to usher us in to the theater, and placed us right infront... Then said don't file out after the show.

the show was awesome, started with welcome to paradise, played all the older songs from 1039, kerplunk, dookie, it was fucking non-stop balls awesome.

after the show, the security guard came and usherd us upstairs, and their they were, just hanging out, coming down off of their stage high, drenched in sweat.

This is where I fucked up, I legit started crying and couldn't say a word, fucking embarrassing a grown (and very straight) man  balling his eyes out like a little fan girl. 

By the time I got my composure, Jason, Tre, and Mike left... Billie and Adie were still there, Adie came up to me and asked how long have u been a fan? My reply was 94. She introduced her self, I laughed, and said I know, smiled and said I'm Rob. She then yelled over to BIllie, and introduced me. He hugged me and thanked me for coming out and asked if I had a good time? 

I said, I've waited almost 20 years for this day to happen. This literally is the best fucking day of my life. He signed my hand, gave me another hug and said thanks for sticking with us.

I hope that they play Iriving again, but i highly doubt that something that awesome can ever happen again.

[lizziebix]

7 minutes ago, BobbyD1982 said:

The boys were playing a show at Iriving Plaza back in 2011. It was a "free" show where u had to win tickets for (I didn't win, so I had to buy an over inflated ticket online from some douche bag capitalizing on the band)

I went to the show alone, and while waiting outside I made friends with this older guy who was taking his daughter and this younger dude who was hanging out with us.

low and behold, the older guy was stopped by the head of security for Irving, they apparently grew up with each other. The older guy intro'd me as his co-worker, his daughter and the younger guy as her BF to the head of security.

When it was time to start letting people in, the security guard lifted the velvet ropes for us and ushered us in past the ticket booth (seriously I got in for free, but i still paid for the damn ticket online)

the security gaurd continued to usher us in to the theater, and placed us right infront... Then said don't file out after the show.

the show was awesome, started with welcome to paradise, played all the older songs from 1039, kerplunk, dookie, it was fucking non-stop balls awesome.

after the show, the security guard came and usherd us upstairs, and their they were, just hanging out, coming down off of their stage high, drenched in sweat.

This is where I fucked up, I legit started crying and couldn't say a word, fucking embarrassing a grown (and very straight) man  balling his eyes out like a little fan girl. 

By the time I got my composure, Jason, Tre, and Mike left... Billie and Adie were still there, Adie came up to me and asked how long have u been a fan? My reply was 94. She introduced her self, I laughed, and said I know, smiled and said I'm Rob. She then yelled over to BIllie, and introduced me. He hugged me and thanked me for coming out and asked if I had a good time? 

I said, I've waited almost 20 years for this day to happen. This literally is the best fucking day of my life. He signed my hand, gave me another hug and said thanks for sticking with us.

I hope that they play Iriving again, but i highly doubt that something that awesome can ever happen again.

Welcome to GDC.  Great first post and certainly an amazing story.

[Chin for a Day]

23 minutes ago, BobbyD1982 said:

 

I said, I've waited almost 20 years for this day to happen. This literally is the best fucking day of my life. He signed my hand, gave me another hug and said thanks for sticking with us.

 

Have you washed your hand yet?  

[greendayatx]

4 hours ago, dirnt286 said:

Where did you drink after the uptown show? Nice that the venue came back after being closed for a bit. Haven't been back since it reopened.

Used to live in Oakland. Been to all those places a bunch. Toots is solid.

I stayed in the Uptown with the Cobras. I had been friends with them for a while so they held me inside "as ransom".

 

I slept in my car that night.

4 hours ago, Jane Lannister said:

 Is that you, Seagull? 

Nosir

[bjafan129]

On 8/18/2016 at 1:55 AM, Jon Benjamin said:

Are you in The Underbelly?

I am not, I am in the Slapp Happy Hours. My friend who went up is the lead singer in the Underbelly. In some videos you can hear someone yell Slapp Happy Hours thinking he was in my band 

[BobbyD1982]

On August 18, 2016 at 11:19 AM, JJ1964 said:

Have you washed your hand yet?  

Unfortunately, yes :/

[Chin for a Day]

16 minutes ago, BobbyD1982 said:

Unfortunately, yes :/

What a bad fan you are.  I never would have washed it.  

[Billie Hoe]

Just now, JJ1964 said:

What a bad fan you are.  I never would have washed it.  

laminate the hand you fake fan  

[localinsomniac]

So I went to see the boys in Lowell, MA back in June '01. After the show, my friend/bandmate and I ran into some kids we knew from another local band. They said, "You wanna meet them? Come on- hurry up!" We followed them and ran around the back of the arena where the buses were parked.

From what I remember, security was really lax back then (the halcyon pre-9/11 days) so we kind of just hovered around the fence, waiting for an opportunity. A delivery guy showed up whole we were waiting and we convinced him to let us carry stacks of pizza in with him. It was absurd the way it worked out. But once we were inside the gate, we didn't really know what to do. I want to say Gabe McNair from No Doubt was there, but I don't remember if he had with playing with the band on that tour.

We never saw Mike or Billie, but Tré finally wandered out and started chatting people up. I was a little starstruck (I had met the other two, along with Jason - which is a comically sad story - the year before) so, I didn't know what to say to him. In the end, I just handed my disposable camera to one of the other guys and told him to just yell his name, setting up my very first photobomb, seen here.

 

[Billie Hoe]

5 minutes ago, localinsomniac said:

(I had met the other two, along with Jason - which is a comically sad story - the year before)

I want to hear this comically sad story!

[localinsomniac]

1 minute ago, Billie Hoe said:

I want to hear this comically sad story!

It was two days after Warning came out. I skipped school and hopped a train to a record store in Cambridge where they were doing a signing after this radio performance.

I had won a contest through the record store to be one of the first ten people in line for the signing, which ended up working against us in a way. If you listen to the performance, it's where Tré sliced his hand in cymbal and went to hospital. So when the band arrived, it was just Billie, Mike and Jason, who was not part of the meet-and-greet. I heard Tré made it to the store after getting his hand sewn up, but I was long gone by then.

I had a chance to get some things signed by them and Billie gave me one of his guitar picks out of his pocket. I asked Mike as well, but he said he had just given away his last one. I also asked him what happened with Tré and he just laughed and said, "Yeahhhh I dunno man." But they were both nice enough and then I went and bought the Warning vinyl.

I saw Jason outside with Jimmy, the big Samoan guy who at the time was their stage security man. He got me into the show the next night which, again, is another story altogether. I think I told that one in a post here years ago.

Anyway, the two of them were standing by the door smoking a cigarette. The problem is, I didn't really know who Jason was at the time. I had recognized him from promo photos leading up to the album release and just assumed I knew.

So I approached the two of them, and like the excited dumbfuck 17-year-old I was, I just blurted, "Are you Timmy Chunks?!?!" He kind of looked at me funny for a second, said "No." and went back to his conversation with Jimmy.

I was hurt, but felt even worse because I think I might have hurt his feelings too.