Red Hot Chili Peppers make good in Inglewood, but not everyone is happy
The Los Angeles-based rock band rescheduled a special show for Saturday, March 2 at Kia Forum after dropping off KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas back in December.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Dubbed KROQ March Two Re-Do, the sold-out event at Kia Forum on Saturday, March 2 was to make up for the band’s absence alongside fellow KROQ acts The Offspring, Garbage, Cannons, Love Joy and more back on Dec. 9. 311 also stepped in when RHCP abruptly announced their departure from the bill. We later found out, during a pre-recorded video from vocalist Anthony Kiedis shown during Acoustic Christmas, it was because of guitarist John Frusciante breaking a finger.
On Saturday night, fans packed back into Kia Forum and were ready to rock out with the band, which was supported by L.A. acts Alexsucks and Irontom. Watching and listening to Frusciante, with his appendage all healed up, was worth the wait. He rejoined the band after a 10-year absence in 2019 and that change has definitely shifted the live performance as he’s a phenomenal player. He’s got the vocal chops too, which he showcased on Saturday by leading the crowd in a sing-along of Loggins and Messina’s “Danny’s Song.”
The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
ALEXSUCKS performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Irontom performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
ALEXSUCKS performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Irontom performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea, left, and John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
ALEXSUCKS performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea, left, and John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Irontom performs as part of the opening act for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the Chili Peppers dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Kia Forum in Inglewood on Saturday, March 2, 2024. The concert, hosted by KROQ, served as a make-up show after the band dropped out of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas due to an injury in the band. (Photo by Trevor Stamp, Contributing Photographer)
At Acoustic Christmas, fans might have gotten about 8-10 songs max since the radio festival sets are much shorter. But for the re-do, RHCP delivered a 75-minute, 15-song set that included hits like “Can’t Stop” and “Scar Tissue” at the start and wrapped with “Under the Bridge” and “Give It Away” in the encore.
The band also played some newer songs including the funky “Aquatic Mouth Dance,” off of 2022’s “Unlimited Love.” The song makes mention of Los Angeles punk rock band X, which RHCP further recognized on Saturday by starting to play a little of X’s “Los Angeles,” before launching into “Scar Tissue.” “Black Summer” is another fantastic song off of “Unlimited Love” that fit well in this set list, and “Eddie,” a tribute to the late Eddie Van Halen off of 2022’s “Return of the Dream Canteen,” was a treat as well.
Though the band could be heard pretty clearly throughout the evening, there was definitely something up with Kiedis’s vocals as they sounded muddled, especially during the first part of the show. But by the encore, he was ripping through the lyrics to the classics like it was never an issue.
Technical glitches aside, it was a super fun show that had generations of RHCP fans dancing in their seats and out on the floor. But no one was having more fun than comedian Bert Kreischer. After getting a shout-out from the stage by KROQ morning show hosts Kevin Klein and Ally Johnson, Kreischer was spotted singing along to RHCP songs and when the camera panned over to him, of course, he took his shirt off. He’s also headlining Kia Forum for the first time as part of the Netflix is a Joke Festival on May 11.
Though the show was a great time, things behind the scenes leading up to the concert didn’t go as swimmingly.
When it was announced that RHCP would be doing a make-up show, KROQ assured fans that they’d be able to return to see their beloved band. Fans who purchased directly from Ticketmaster received a link for the newly added show earlier this week. However, those who purchased resale tickets through third parties were instructed by KROQ to reach out to their point of purchase for options.
“Your 2023 KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas ticket is not valid on its own,” KROQ posted on Instagram on Friday, March 1. “Only original Ticketmaster purchasers will receive a new ticket to the KROQ March Two Re-Do.”
The comments on the post were pretty brutal because the fans who bought tickets off of sites like StubHub, SeatGeek, Vivid Seats, Gametime or even Ticketmaster’s own resale option were quick to point out that originally KROQ led them to believe that all tickets would be valid for this re-do show.
“Feel like you failed us and rewarded resellers,” Instagram user kaylahugsit chimed in.
“I bought these tickets specifically for RHCP as a gift for my sister’s birthday because she’s a huge fan of @chilipeppers,” ralexisn99 wrote. “And because I bought them through a reseller I am unable to receive the tickets. This is extremely disappointing as we’ve both been looking forward to seeing RHCP play for months. Why was this event organized this way?”
KROQ had not responded further to the fans questions or demands directly on social media sites, but it seemed that several of the original ticket sellers did the right thing and forwarded on the tickets to those who had purchased them in the first place.
“Luckily the original purchaser sent us the tickets without us having to do anything,” luxkitty wrote. “If you purchased from StubHub I would call to see if they can reach the original purchaser and get you your tickets.”
