Legendary 2000s Rock Band Shocks Fans by Playing Beloved Song for First Time in 18 Years
There's arguably no better feeling than when you're seeing your favorite band perform live and they add your most beloved track to the setlist. That's exactly what happened this weekend when a legendary 2000s rock band made one fan's dream come true when they played a certain song live for the first time in almost two decades.
On May 16, Florida rockers Shinedown made history during their stop in Madison, Wis., when they honored a request to play a track that they hadn't previously performed for 8 years.
At around halfway through the set, the musicians made the shock announcement.
"Now it's about to get really interesting," the band's vocalist, Brent Smith, said as the crew was switching out Zach Myers' guitar.
"A young man by the name of Anthony asked us to play a song earlier," Myers added.
"Real quick, before you say anything. We don't do this for anyone," Smith continued, addressing the fan in the crowd. "Anthony, you are the number one tonight, my brother. You are the number one, my man."
Myers went on to explain that the band hadn't played the song live for 18 years, and that Anthony's request "made our monitor engineer the happiest guy on earth."
"Hey, if this falls apart, I hope you still have a good time tonight, cause it probably will," he continued.
The song in question? "Junkies for Fame," a bonus track that appeared on the deluxe edition of one of the band's most popular records, The Sound of Madness. Released in 2008, the album reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200 chart.
The band is currently touring North America in honor of their eighth studio album, Ei8ht, which will be released on May 29. Kicking off in Greenbay, Wis., on May 13, the tour stops in dozens of major cities across the U.S. and Canada, before concluding in McHenry, Ill., on Sept. 10. Support comes from Coheed and Cambria, Those Damn Crows, Black Stone Cherry, and From Ashes to New, varying by date.
"This album is over a year in the making. Without question as a band we pushed ourselves like never before," Smith said of Ei8ht, per LoudWire. "Especially when it comes to Eric [Bass]."
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This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 1:16 PM.