2009.12.11 - MTV News - Axl Rose Says 'Unruly' Paparazzi Attacked Him 'Unprovoked' (& related articles)

Axl Rose Says 'Unruly' Paparazzi Attacked Him 'Unprovoked'

Guns N' Roses frontman issues statement about alleged fight at LAX on Wednesday.

By Gil Kaufman

Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose issued a statement late on Thursday about an alleged run-in he had with paparazzi on Wednesday at the Los Angeles International Airport when he was on his way to GNR's first tour in support of last year's Chinese Democracy.

"Axl Rose, lead singer for the legendary rock group Guns N' Roses, was unhurt last evening when he was accosted by an unruly group of paparazzi at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)," read the statement posted on the band's official MySpace page.

"At the time of the incident, Mr. Rose was en route to Taipei, Taiwan, to kick off Guns N' Roses' tour of Southeast Asia, including shows in Taiwan, Korea and Japan. Mr. Rose, who was about to enter a security checkpoint at LAX when the altercation took place, was approached by a group of unchecked and unruly photographers, who became aggressive with the singer and female members of the traveling group. Mr. Rose was not injured during the unprovoked attack and was able to board his flight without further incident."

According to a statement released by a spokesperson for LAX, "A video appearing to depict singer Axl Rose punching another person (believed to be a celebrity photographer) was taken Wed, 12-9-09, by an unknown person at the Tom Bradley International Terminal near the north side TSA exit lane. The punch takes place near a person in uniform. Airport Police reports no officers were present when this occurred. Further, as of this date, there have been no crime reports or radio calls initiated from this incident."

A spokesperson for the LAX police force could not be reached for comment about the alleged incident at press time.

TMZ reported that a paparazzo claims to have footage of Rose punching him in the head during the scuffle on Wednesday night. The unnamed photographer told the site that Rose arrived at LAX with an unidentified woman, and as they were walking through the airport, the woman allegedly got into a confrontation with paparazzi who were trying to take her picture. The source said that Rose saw the woman struggling with the other shooters and "instantly started throwing punches." TMZ said the photog has not yet produced the video of the incident and no airport security or police got involved in the incident.

Mercurial singer Rose doesn't appear to have been too thrown off by the incident, as the band's just-launched Twitter announced early Friday, "On stage, rocking Taipei!" The show, the band's first in nearly three years, is part of a four-gig swing through Southeast Asia that will be followed by 16 Canadian dates in January and early February, and South American shows in March and April. No U.S. dates have been announced yet.

https://web.archive.org/web/20111219224132/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1628064/axl-rose-unruly-paparazzi-attacked-him-unprovoked.jhtml

Entertainment Weekly, Dec. 11, 2009:
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Axl Rose issues statement on 'unprovoked' paparazzi scuffle

By Simon Vozick-Levinson

Axl Rose has issued a statement about his run-in with photographers at Los Angeles International Airport this week. The singer reportedly missed a Dec. 9 soundcheck for Guns N’ Roses’ gig tonight in Taiwan, leading to rumors that he had been involved in a fight at the airport. The statement posted last night on Guns N’ Roses’ MySpace says that Rose was “accosted by an unruly group of paparazzi” in an “unprovoked attack” while preparing to go through security. The photographers’ names have not been reported. Read the full statement after the jump.

Guns N’ Roses statement:

“Axl Rose, lead singer for the legendary rock group Guns N’ Roses, was unhurt last evening when he was accosted by an unruly group of paparazzi at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

“At the time of the incident, Mr. Rose was en-route to Taipei, Taiwan, to kick-off Guns N’ Roses’ tour of Southeast Asia including shows in Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

“Mr. Rose, who was about to enter a security checkpoint at LAX when the altercation took place, was approached by a group of unchecked and unruly photographers who became aggressive with the singer and female members of the traveling group.

“Mr. Rose was not injured during the unprovoked attack and was able to board his flight without further incident.”

https://ew.com/article/2009/12/11/axl-rose-paparazzi-fight/

Exclaim!, Dec. 11, 2009:
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Axl Rose Issues Statement Regarding Bloody Airport Scuffle with Paparazzi

By Greg Pratt

They're out to get him. Or, more likely, he's out to get himself. No stranger to controversy, Guns N' Roses front-man Axl Rose has made headlines again. And, uh, not for his band's comeback material, but for attacking a paparazzi dude in an airport.

In an incident that occurred at the Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday night (December 9), Rose and a paparazzi photographer got into an altercation that resulted with "a few bloodied participants," according to Live Daily. Rose was on his way to Taiwan, boarding a plane to go meet his band there, which had already begun sound-checking without the presumably late Rose.

TMZ is now reporting that the photographer is saying Rose punched him in the head, and he had the photos to prove it. Here's how the incident went down.

Apparently, a woman accompanying Rose started scuffling with a few photographers when they were taking pictures of the two. Seeing this, Rose stepped in and started hitting the photographers. Axl's people dragged Rose away from it all and got him through security and on to the plane.

According to reports, no airport security or police got involved; LAX police told Rolling Stone they do not have any record of the event on file.

Yesterday (December 10), Rose issued a statement about the scuffle, which is available on the band's MySpace page. It reads as follows:

Axl Rose, lead singer for the legendary rock group Guns N' Roses, was unhurt last evening when he was accosted by an unruly group of paparazzi at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

At the time of the incident, Mr. Rose was en-route to Taipei, Taiwan, to kick off Guns N' Roses' tour of Southeast Asia, including shows in Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

Mr. Rose, who was about to enter a security checkpoint at LAX when the altercation took place, was approached by a group of unchecked and unruly photographers who became aggressive with the singer and female members of the travelling group.

Mr. Rose was not injured during the unprovoked attack and was able to board his flight without further incident.

Of course, the band are out supporting 2008's Chinese Democracy.

https://exclaim.ca/music/article/axl_rose_issues_statement_regarding_bloody_airport_scuffle_with_paparazzi