Artists often encounter various problems while performing live, but when it’s the forces of nature you’re dealing with, one might better take to their heels. Bruce Springsteen, however, didn’t run away from thousands of locusts when they swarmed his stage, but one particular locust wasn’t easy to deal with. The singer recalled the annoying moment while chatting with Graham Norton.
Bruce was performing down in Texas when thousands of locusts appeared out of nowhere, but he didn’t give in and continued performing despite encountering only thousands of locusts. However, one particular locust gave him a rough time.
“I was on stage in Texas, and it’s a cool night,” recalled Springsteen. “So, I’m standing there, and I notice a bug this big [of] a locust, just come on and sat on my microphone, and it’s staring at me. Then, I notice there’s another one and another one until the stage is filled with thousands of locusts. Everywhere.”
He continued, “They were drawn by the light and warmth. And so, I’m trying to… I’m singing a song called, ‘My Hometown,’ it’s a serious song. I got the locust on my microphone. He goes through the top of my head and slowly crawls down my shirt into the middle of my back. I’m still singing; I can feel him back there.”
His struggle ended when he finished the song, but that wasn’t the end of his troubles. “I finished the song, [I’m] walking off stage, and my drummer says, ‘That was incredible. I saw the locust go straight down your back, and you didn’t even move.’ [imitating the drummer slapping his back].”
The singer made it through a performance with a locust on his back, but an appreciative gesture from his drummer turned into an unfortunate moment. The locust was crushed on his back, and Springsteen was definitely not pleased with that.
