Matty Healy recalls the moment he joined Green Day onstage when he was a teeanger – and how he later told the band about it.
Those who have seen Green Day live before will know that a staple part of their set is inviting fans up onstage to perform with them – and it's a ritual that first began during the world tour for their brilliant 1995 album Insomniac.
Not only has this level of audience participation given Green Day fans a night they will never, ever forget – it's also led some of those lucky enough to perform with the band becoming future rock stars themselves.
Case in point: Matty Healy, frontman of UK pop megastars The 1975, who was brought up onstage by bassist Mike Dirnt at the age of 13 at the Newcastle Arena.
“I played with Green Day once,” he tells Zane Lowe in a new interview for Apple Music's Beats 1. “I was like 13 and they did that thing where they get kids up onstage. And I was at the front and then I got up and played bass with them.”
Watch Matty discussing his very brief stint in Green Day below:
After Matty later told Green Day about it, in an interview with Rolling Stone in 2017 Billie Joe Armstrong said, "I think some kids ended up forming bands because of that. I think that’s what happened to the guy from The 1975."
Speaking about how the tradition first began, Billie Joe explained: "The first time I remember doing it is on the Insomniac tour. We were playing a show in New Orleans and having a rough time. I just remember feeling like it was a drag. I remember going, 'I don’t want to play anymore. Who else wants to play?' So we brought someone up onstage and when the kid started playing, the whole room lit up and it changed the show for me. It was an amazing experience."
When asked how he chooses the fan each night, he revealed: "There’s no science to it. Sometimes you can look at someone in the eyes and tell they know what they’re doing. But if someone can’t play, it creates a different kind of magic. I’ll look and go, 'Oh, shit, this person can’t play a note.' And so I’ll get behind and play the chords while they strum and it ends up turning out alright."
Read this next: Billie Joe Armstrong's 14 best non-Green Day songs
Catch Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer on The Hella Mega Tour at the following dates this year. You just never which future celebrity might be chosen from the crowd to join them onstage…
June
13 Paris, France, La Defense Arena,
14 Groningen, Netherlands, Stadspark
17 Antwerp, Belgium, Sportspaleis
21 Vienna, Austria, Ernst Happel Stadium
24 Glasgow, UK, Glasgow Green
26 London, UK, London Stadium
27 Huddersfield, UK, The John Smith’s Stadium
29 Dublin, Ireland, RDS Arena
July
17 Seattle, WA, T-Mobile Park
21 San Francisco, CA, Oracle Park
24 San Diego, CA, Petco Park
25 Los Angeles, CA, Dodger Stadium
28 Commerce City, CO, DICK’s Sporting Goods Park
31 Arlington, TX, Globe Life Field
August
1 Houston, TX Minute Maid Park
5 Miami, FL Hard Rock Stadium
6 Jacksonville, FL TIAA Bank Field
8 Atlanta, GA SunTrust Park
11 Minneapolis, MN Target Field
13 Chicago, IL Wrigley Field
15 Pittsburgh, PA PNC Park
16 Hershey, PA Hersheypark Stadium
19 Detroit, MI Comerica Park
21 Washington, DC Nationals Park
22 New York, NY Citi Field
24 Toronto, ON Rogers Centre
27 Boston, MA Fenway Park
29 Philadelphia, PA Citizens Bank Park
November
8 Perth, Australia – HBF Park
11 Melbourne, Australia – Marvel Stadium
14 Sydney, Australia – Bankwest Stadium
17 Brisbane, Australia – Suncorp Stadium
20 Dunedin, New Zealand – Forsyth Barr Stadium
22 Auckland, New Zealand – Mt Smart Stadium
