Aerosmith won’t be playing their scheduled show in Jakarta on 11th May, cancelling their appearance due to security fears following news that the Indonesian government has arrested 2 militants allegedly planning to bomb the Myanmar Embassy.
The legendary rockers were set to play to an almost sold-out crowd of 15,000 in the nation’s capital this Saturday night as part of their Global Warming tour. They released a statement via promoter Ismaya Live’s website, saying:
“Unfortunately, we have to cancel our upcoming show in Jakarta. We want to apologize to all our fans who were expecting to see us and hope that one day we can make it up to them. We would also like to thank everyone at Dyandra Entertainment, Ismaya Live and Sound Rhythm for the time and effort they put into the pre-production of this show.”
The suspects were allegedly planning to attack the embassy to protest Myanmar’s treatment of Muslims.
It’s unclear whether Aerosmith cancelled due to the specific threat, though Ismaya Live spokesperson Sarah Deshita did mention that efforts to beef up security for the event did not sway the band’s decision:
“We are sad and disappointed over the decision. We did all we could to ensure security was tight and even engaged the marines but it’s not enough.”
Aerosmith have just been confirmed to headline Boston Strong, a benefit gig to raise funds for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings. Boston natives, the band shed light on their emotions immediately following the attack during an Australian press conference to promote their appearance at the recent Stone Music Festival.
