Reminder: Guns N’ Roses will play NC soon. And they just announced their opener.
With just over 11 weeks till their concert at BB&T Field on the campus of Wake Forest University, Guns N’ Roses on Thursday morning announced their opening act for the stadium show: LĪVE.
If you need a refresher, that’s the Ed Kowalczyk-led alternative rock band that had hits like “Selling the Drama,” “The Dolphin’s Cry” and “Heaven” in the decade after G N’ R experienced its greatest successes.
LĪVE is joining the reunited hard-rock vets for the Aug. 11 concert in Winston-Salem, as well as in Hershey, Pa., on Aug. 13. In other cities, Guns N’ Roses will be supported by a variety of other bands, including: ZZ Top, Deftones, Sturgill Simpson, Royal Blood and Our Lady Peace.
The announcement of the openers was paired with the news that G N’ R is adding 15 new dates to its North American tour, although the closest of them to Charlotte is Cleveland, which is a nearly eight-hour drive away.
Fortunately, tickets are still available for the N.C. date of the “Not in This Lifetime” tour, which will mark Guns N’ Roses’ first performance in North Carolina since its legendary “Chinese Democracy” tour stopped at Greensboro Coliseum in November 2006.
To recap, for those who weren’t aware of the show and are now interested, here are several things we’ve mentioned previously that are worth noting:
▪ GN’R’s lineup includes three members of the classic lineup – Axl Rose (vocals, piano), Duff McKagan (bass) and Slash (lead guitar) – along with Dizzy Reed (keyboard), Richard Fortus (rhythm guitar), Frank Ferrer (drums) and Melissa Reese (keyboard).
▪ Its 2017 tour will kick off on Saturday at Dublin’s Slane Castle, steamroll into 18 other cities across the U.K. and Europe, then return to the U.S. for stadium dates starting on July 27 at the Dome At America’s Center in St. Louis.
▪ The concert in Winston-Salem will be the first held at Wake Forest University’s football field since a deal was inked just over three years ago between Wake Forest and Greensboro Coliseum for management of non-sporting events at university venues, including Joel Coliseum.
▪ The show could host up to 36,000 fans, including about 8,000 on the field.
▪ Ticket pricing tiers range from $35 for seats in the six sections farthest from the stage to $699 for the best seats (general-admission standing-room spots in the pit, with a few “VIP” perks). Where to buy? Via www.livenation.com, at all Ticketmaster outlets, or by phone at 800-745-3000.
▪ Oh, and FYI – for those who don’t get out much – Winston-Salem is about 80 miles from Charlotte.
▪ Also (and this is important for planning purposes), Aug. 11 is a Friday. Therefore, most people won’t have to worry about having to work in the morning after what will likely be a long show and a long return trip, if you factor in the likely massive traffic jams that’ll face folks trying to get out of the parking lots. Of course, Winston-Salem has hotels, too...
▪ By the way, Guns N’ Roses hasn’t played Charlotte in more than 25 years. The band’s massively popular “Use Your Illusion” tour came to the old Charlotte Coliseum on June 23, 1991; previously, they had been in the same building to open for Motley Crue’s “Girls, Girls, Girls” tour, on Nov. 11, 1987.
▪ Finally: Want more info on what LĪVE has been up to? Click here.
This story was originally published May 25, 2017 at 9:29 AM with the headline "Reminder: Guns N’ Roses will play NC soon. And they just announced their opener.."