Brian May says Queen will not tour the United States again, citing safety concerns and a belief that the country has fundamentally changed since the band’s heyday.
“America is a dangerous place at the moment, so you have to take that into account,” May, the band’s lead guitarist, told the Daily Mail in comments published this week. “It’s very sad because I feel like Queen grew up in America, and we love it, but it’s not what it was. Everyone is thinking twice about going there at the moment.”
The remarks appear to close the door on any future U.S. concerts by Queen, which last toured North America in 2023 with singer Adam Lambert, concluding a global run that ended in Tokyo in early 2024.
Article continues below this ad
May, now 78, had previously expressed enthusiasm about a possibleresidency at Sphere in Las Vegas, telling Rolling Stone last year that the venue had his “mind working” and that discussions were underway.
Those plans now appear shelved. Rolling Stone reported that May’s comments followed the deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota involving immigration officials, adding to his concerns about safety.
Queen’s relationship with the United States has been central to the band’s legacy. While formed in Britain, the group achieved some of its earliest and biggest breakthroughs on American radio and stages in the 1970s and ’80s, touring extensively and cementing its reputation as an arena-filling act with hits like “We Will Rock You,” “We Are the Champions” and “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
May said the band’s future remains uncertain, though he did not rule out performing again elsewhere.
“Never say never about not coming back,” he said. “I don’t know when Queen will be back on stage — it’s an unknown. We’ll take it day by day.”
