AC DC Confirms Guns N Roses Axl Rose As Lead Singer For European and US Dates

LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 28: Singer Brian Johnson (L) and musician Angus Young of AC/DC perform at Dodger Stadium on September 28, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Hours before Guns N’ Roses prepared to take the stage at Coachella, the rumor heard around the rock world  over the last few weeks was confirmed: GN’R lead singer Axl Rose will join AC/DC for a series of dates.

Rose replaces Brian Johnson, AC/DC’s lead singer for the past 35 years, starting May 7 in Lisbon, Portugal through June 12 in Aarhus, Denmark.

Last month, AC/DC postponed 10 dates on the U.S. leg of its Rock or Bust tour after doctors told Johnson to stop touring immediately or risk total hearing loss. The make-up dates for those shows have yet to be announced, but they will also feature Rose.

Rumors about Rose joining the band began circulating in mid-March and only escalated after he was seen leaving a rehearsal studio with the band.

However, he was also preparing for his reunion tour with his bandmates in Guns N’ Roses, and publicists for both bands would not officially onfirm his role until now, when they announced the news through a joint statement.

Following their Coachella gigs tonight and next Sunday, the Guns N’ Roses U.S. stadium tour starts June 23 in Detroit.  It is the band’s first tour with original members Rose, guitarist Slash, and bassist Duff McKagan in more than 20 years.

The GN’R tour, is cheekily called Not In This Lifetime, spoofing the Eagles’ Hell Freezes Over Tour, which the band embarked on in the ‘90s after vowing they would never tour together again. Similarly, Rose had declared that he would never share the stage with his Slash again, tellingBillboard in 2009, “What’s clear is that one of the two of us will die before a reunion and however, sad, ugly or unfortunate anyone views it, it is how it is. Those decisions were made a long time ago and reiterated year after year by one man.” Never say never.