Country singer Miranda Lambert has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons. During her show at the Bakkt Theater in Planet Hollywood, the singer stopped mid-performance to call out a group of fans who were reportedly taking selfies during one of her emotional songs, “Tin Man.”
“I’m gonna stop right here for a second, I’m sorry. These girls are worried about their selfie and not listening to the song. It’s p-ssing me off a little bit,” Lambert said to the people taking the selfies. “I don’t like it–at all. We’re here to hear some country music, and I’m singing some country d-mn music.”
The incident quickly went viral on social media, with fans divided over Lambert’s reaction. Some criticized her for shaming the fans, while others defended her right to demand respect from the audience.
According to reports, Lambert had just started a song when she spotted a group of fans taking selfies in the audience. It was then that she brought the show to a halt and expressed her frustration at their behavior.
DEBATE: Miranda Lambert stopped her concert to scold to fans who were taking selfies while she sang. Were they wrong to take pictures instead of listening to the music? Or their right to enjoy the concert however they want since they paid for it? pic.twitter.com/cTE9VudGeD
— Liz Wheeler (@Liz_Wheeler) July 17, 2023
While some fans supported Lambert’s stance, others felt that she had overreacted and that concertgoers should be able to enjoy the show in their own way. Many pointed out that fans had paid good money for their tickets and had the right to take photos and videos to remember the occasion.
“Miranda didn’t even talk to our Vegas audience between songs hardly. Always in a mood. Fans can enjoy however they want. They paid,” scolded one TikTok user.
Others, however, praised Lambert for speaking out against what they saw as disrespectful behavior. “There’s all the time in the world to partake in those activities during her rowdier, more up-tempo numbers but during her sacred ballads just shut up and listen,” defended one fan.
According to social media posts and music outlets reports, a number of fans left the concert in protest after hearing Lambert’s reaction and this left them enraged.
“Let’s go — you don’t do that to fans,” one woman can be heard saying to her companions as they filed out of their seats.
This is not the first time that Lambert has called out her audience for their behavior. In 2017, she stopped a performance of “Tin Man” in Chicago because some fans were talking loudly.
“I hear talking. I’m like literally out here with my diary for y’all to read. So I don’t want any talking. Sorry,” she said at the time.