“Hell of a Way to Go” singer Riley Green joked that he would be passing out phone tethers at his next concert after the painful incident.

Country singer gets 5 stitches after fan throws phone at him: ‘Sewed up’

"Hell of a Way to Go" singer Riley Green joked that he would be passing out phone tethers at his next concert after the painful incident.

By Emlyn Travis

Emlyn Travis

Emlyn Travis is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2022. Her work has previously appeared on MTV News, Teen Vogue, and NME.

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March 16, 2026 1:33 p.m. ET

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Riley Green arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere Of CBS Original's 'Marshals' at Autry Museum of the American West on Feb. 24, 2026 in Los Angeles, Calif. Credit:

Steve Granitz/FilmMagic

Country singer Riley Green is sharing a health update after being struck in the head by a cell phone at a recent Melbourne, Australia, concert.

The “There Was This Girl” singer, 37, posted a gnarly snapshot of his sewn-up ear on his Instagram Story on Sunday. On it, he wrote, “5 stitches later… sewed up.”

In a follow-up Story, Green posted an image of a phone tether that clips to one’s belt loop and jokingly added, “Passin’ these out at the door tonight.”

Riley Green's Instagram Story.

Riley Green/Instagram

Green was mid-performance at the Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne on Saturday when a fan chucked their phone and appeared to hit him in the ear. In video footage from the event, which was shared on social media, the country star can be seen setting down his guitar and walking toward the end of the stage.

“Can we get the house lights on real quick?” he asks, before pointing out the perpetrator in the crowd and urging security to escort them out. (The individual who tossed the phone was removed from the event, Billboard reports.)

When the camera pans back to the stage, Green can be seen with blood trickling from his ear down his neck. Crew members then appear on stage and begin treating the injury by wiping off the blood with a towel. “Am I bleeding?” the singer asks, before telling the audience, “Y’all see how tough I am?”

Riley Green performs onstage during the 59th Annual Country Music Association Awards at Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 19, 2025 in Nashville, Tenn.

Kevin Mazur/Getty

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Representatives for Green did not immediately respond to **'s request for comment.

After the event, Green shared footage of the incident on his Instagram Story, per Billboard. He also shared two snapshots; one that featured him being treated for the wound backstage and another of him with blood running down his neck set to the tune of Merle Haggard’s 1970 hit, “The Fightin’ Side of Me.”

Green isn’t the only musician who has been injured or put in danger by objects thrown by fans onstage in recent years. Bebe Rexha similarly received stitches after being hit in the face with a phone at her New York City gig in 2023. The man who threw the phone was later arrested and charged with assault.

That same year, Harry Styles and Kelsea Ballerini were also struck by projectiles while performing. In fact, it got so bad that Taylor Swift even addressed the behavior while on her Eras Tour, telling fans at her 2023 Buenos Aires show that “it really freaks me out” when items get thrown onstage.

She added, “I love that you brought presents and that is so nice, but just can you please not throw them on the stage. I love you so much."

Adele, however, was a lot more blunt when it came to calling out the bad concert etiquette during her 2023 Las Vegas residency. Holding a t-shirt cannon, she said, “I f---ing dare you. Dare you to throw something at me and I'll f---ing kill you."

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