Artists and Airlines: Feel Free To Move About The Crazy

posted in: Country • Music News

It’s no secret that musicians can be a pain in the butt to deal with. They ‘re always wishy-washy and never on-time. And their special pre-show rituals, lengthy riders and difficult management can seem impossible to deal with.  Add a grumpy flight attendent into the mix, and you’ve have a recipe for an incredibly unpleasant situation, which can turn ugly fast.

Just last week, country singer John Rich was asked to leave a 10:50 AM Southwest flight from Las Vegas to Nashville for being intoxicated. After reportedly getting into various verbal disagreements with other passengers before boarding and displaying apparent drunken behavior after being seated, the flight crew determined Rich was too drunk to fly so he left the aircraft.

Back in October, Whitney Houston had a close call with the airline as well, almost being removed from a flight for refusal to wear her seatbelt. However, upon reasoning the diva finally agreed and the flight took off as scheduled.

But it’s not always the artist in the wrong. Earlier this fall, Billie Joe Armstrong was kicked off a flight from Oakland, CA to Burbank, CA for refusing to pull up his pants. According to reports, Armstrong was approached during boarding, by a flight attendant who asked him to pull up his pants. After a short exchange ending in  “I’m just trying to get to my f**king seat”, the shocked Green Day guitarist was removed.

And even more shockingly, Leisha Hailey, actress and member of the band Uh Huh Her, and her girlfriend were escorted off a Southwest flight for kissing. Apparently, a crew member who received a complaint from another passenger, approached the couple and asked them to stop kissing as they were on a “family airline”. Outraged by this request and its homophobic implications, Hailey began swearing at the flight attendent who then had the two of them escorted off the flight.

The airlines have issued refunds and apologies to both Hailey and Armstrong about the incidents, after both stars took to Twitter to share their anger at the airline. Both Houston and Rich seem apologetic about the mishaps. Lets just hope all parties learned their lessons.

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