Watch: IRON MAIDEN pays tribute to former singer PAUL DI'ANNO during Minnesota concert
28-10-2024
IRON MAIDEN paid tribute to their former singer Paul Di’Anno during their concert Tuesday night (October 22) at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Prior to launching into the track “The Time Machine”, current MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson addressed the crowd, saying: So, this next track is actually called ‘The Time Machine’. And I was watching ‘Back To The Future’ last night on TV and it’s true. It is 1.21 gigawatts of power that you need to put a DeLorean through the portal of time itself. I normally tell a story about that and we have a bit of fun. But tonight is — I don’t wanna put a downer on the proceedings at all, because our friend, our bandmember Paul Di’Anno passed away, as you are probably aware. And if you’re not aware of that fact, you are now.”
He continued: “Paul was instrumental in the first two (MAIDEN) albums, groundbreaking with ‘Killers’ and the first album. An amazing voice, devoted to rock and roll right up till the last minute of his life. So… for those of you who were born and still remember those early albums, when obviously I wasn’t in the band and he was, and those of you who were fans of the stuff he did with BATTLEZONE and his own projects afterwards, and for anybody else that fancies having a listen to tracks like ‘Remember Tomorrow’ and stuff like that, which are absolutely awesome, I’m just gonna ask everybody to just take like a few seconds to just close your eyes in silence and say, just internally, mentally — if you believe in God, if you don’t believe in God, it actually doesn’t matter; just believe in what you believe in and just say, ‘Thanks, boss, for doing what you did.'”
After pausing for a few seconds, Dickinson added: “So, Paul, if you’re listening, this is a little message from Minneapolis to wherever you are, upstairs or downstairs, Minneapolis, for Paul Di’Anno, scream for me.”
Di’Anno, whose real name was Paul Andrews, passed away at his home in Salisbury.
Born in Chingford, East London on May 17, 1958, Paul first came to prominence as lead singer of IRON MAIDEN between 1978 and 1981. He sang on their groundbreaking debut album “Iron Maiden” and the influential follow-up release, “Killers”.
Since leaving IRON MAIDEN, Paul Di’Anno had a long and eventful recording career with BATTLEZONE and KILLERS as well as numerous solo releases and guest appearances.
Despite being troubled by severe health issues in recent years that restricted him to performing in a wheelchair, Paul continued to entertain his fans around the world, racking up well over 100 shows since 2023.
His first career retrospective album, “The Book Of The Beast”, was released in September 2024 and featured highlights of his recordings since leaving IRON MAIDEN.
The day that Di’Anno‘s death was announced, IRON MAIDEN released a statement in which the band said: “We are all deeply saddened to learn about the passing of Paul Di’Anno earlier today. Paul‘s contribution to IRON MAIDEN was immense and helped set us on the path we have been travelling as a band for almost five decades. His pioneering presence as a frontman and vocalist, both on stage and on our first two albums, will be very fondly remembered not just by us, but by fans around the world. We were very grateful to have had the chance to catch up a couple of years ago and to spend time with him once more.
“On behalf of the band, (managers) Rod (Smallwood) and Andy (Taylor), and the whole IRON MAIDEN team, we extend our deepest sympathies to Paul‘s family and close friends. Rest in peace, Paul.”
MAIDEN bassist and founder Steve Harris added: “It’s just so sad he’s gone. I was in touch with him only recently as we texted each other about West Ham and their ups and downs. At least he was still gigging until recently, it was something that kept him going, to be out there whenever he could. He will be missed by us all. Rest in peace, mate.”
IRON MAIDEN will start their “Run For Your Lives” world tour on May 27 next year in Budapest, Hungary, followed by 27 stadium, festival and arena shows around Europe. The tour marks 50 years since Steve Harris formed the band in late 1975 and, to celebrate this, MAIDEN fans are promised a very special setlist, spanning the nine studio albums from “Iron Maiden” to “Fear Of The Dark”, with their most spectacular and elaborate show ever.
Dates are as below. Tickets go on sale next week. As always, there will be an exclusive pre-sale for IRON MAIDEN fan club members and Trooper VIP packages will be available at all U.K. and Ireland shows.
IRON MAIDEN lead singer Bruce Dickinson says: “Next year is a very special one for IRON MAIDEN and we’re going to be giving our fans a once-in-a-lifetime live experience. This is a tour that’s gonna put a smile on your face and a cheer in your throat. If you’ve seen us before, then get ready to take that experience to a whole new level. If you’ve never seen us before, then what the hell have you been waiting for? Now’s your chance to find out what you’ve been missing! IRON MAIDEN‘s definitely gonna get ya!”
The tour includes five shows in the U.K. and Ireland, with arenas in Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow, and outdoor shows in Dublin and London. So it is with immense pride that IRON MAIDEN will celebrate their 50th anniversary with one of the most notable concerts in their history.
On Saturday, June 28, MAIDEN will perform at the London Stadium, home of West Ham Football Club — the team that band founder Steve Harris has supported throughout his life, and with whom IRON MAIDEN have a long and storied history.
This concert in front of over 60,000 fans at the London Stadium, which was constructed in Stratford for the 2012 Olympics and four years later became the new home of West Ham, will be the first time that IRON MAIDEN have performed on the club’s hallowed turf. A true homecoming show — with Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Nicko McBrain all born in the surrounding area — it will also be the biggest U.K. venue the band have ever headlined outside of their festival appearances.
Steve Harris says: “My love of football and my support of West Ham is no secret, and I know many of our fans around the world have shared that with me too. So we’re all very excited to be playing at the London Stadium as part of the ‘Run For Your Lives’ tour. And of course, it’s not just London — the whole U.K. tour is going to be a real celebration for all of us. To be able to bring this very special show to all our fans across the U.K. and Ireland next year is going to be a great way to mark 50 years of IRON MAIDEN. We can’t wait to see you all there!”
Special guests for the London and Dublin outdoor shows will be American rockers HALESTORM. British metal band THE RAVEN AGE will open all five U.K. and Ireland shows.
MAIDEN manager Rod Smallwood states: “50 years of MAIDEN and I have seen 46 of them! With well over 100 million albums sold and almost 2500 shows in 64 countries and counting, to countless millions of fans, we are all still loving every second and consider every tour a new challenge to bring something different and exciting to our fans. And for this very special one we’ re pulling out all the stops!
“We will cover classics and fan favorites from the first nine albums, from ‘Iron Maiden’ to ‘Fear Of The Dark’, many of which we haven’t played in years and many we will likely never play again in the future. We have already been hard at work for months putting together an even more spectacular and elaborate new show which will bring the songs to life more than we have ever been able to do before. This is going to be a huge couple of years for IRON MAIDEN, and Eddie, of course, and we are very excited about what we have up our sleeves for you fans throughout the whole of our 50th year. I promise you are all going to be very happy indeed!”
“Run For Your Lives” 2025 tour dates:
May 27 – Budapest Aréna, Budapest, Hungary *
May 31 – Letnany Airport, Prague, Czech Republic *
Jun. 01 – TIPOS Arena, Bratislava, Slovakia *
Jun. 05 – Trondheim Rocks, Trondheim, Norway (Festival)
Jun. 07 – SR-Bank Arena, Stavanger, Norway *
Jun. 09 – Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark *
Jun. 12 – 3Arena, Stockholm, Sweden *
Jun. 13 – 3Arena, Stockholm, Sweden *
Jun. 16 – Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland *
Jun. 21 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham, England ^
Jun. 22 – Co-op Live, Manchester, England ^
Jun. 25 – Malahide Castle, Dublin, Ireland *^
Jun. 28 – London Stadium, London, England *^
Jun. 30 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland ^
Jul. 03 – Eurockéennes Festival, Belfort, France (Festival)
Jul. 05 – Estadio Cívitas Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain **
Jul. 06 – MEO Arena, Lisbon, Portugal **
Jul. 09 – Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland **
Jul. 11 – Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen, Germany **
Jul. 13 – Stadio Euganeo, Padova, Italy **
Jul. 15 – Bürgerweide, Bremen, Germany **
Jul. 17 – Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna, Austria **
Jul. 19 – Paris La Défense Arena, Paris, France **
Jul. 23 – GelreDome, Arnhem, Netherlands **
Jul. 25 – Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt, Germany **
Jul. 26 – Cannstatter Wasen, Stuttgart, Germany **
Jul. 29 – Waldbühne, Berlin, Germany **
Aug. 02 – PGE Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland **
Support acts:
* HALESTORM
^ THE RAVEN AGE
** AVATAR
Having been established in 1975 in the East End of London, IRON MAIDEN have, over the course of 17 studio albums, more than 110 million records sold and some of the greatest world tours that music has ever witnessed, become one of the greatest and most influential British rock bands of all time. Yet despite their enormous success, they have remained down to earth and true to their roots throughout their career.
IRON MAIDEN are currently on the road completing their acclaimed “The Future Past Tour” dates, which started earlier this month in Australia and New Zealand and continue through Japan, Canada, United States, Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Argentina before concluding in Sao Paulo, Brazil with two concerts at the huge Allianz Parque Stadium in December.
IRON MAIDEN‘s latest album, “Senjutsu”, was released in September 2021 via BMG. The band’s first LP in six years was recorded in 2019 in Paris with longstanding producer Kevin Shirley and co-produced by Harris. It features three tracks whose running time exceeds 10 minutes each.
For “Senjutsu” — loosely translated as “tactics and strategy” — the band once again enlisted the services of Mark Wilkinson to create the spectacular Samurai-themed cover artwork, based on an idea by Harris.
“Senjutsu” topped the charts in several European countries upon its release, including in Belgium, Finland, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland.
Social media