Rick Allen thanks fans for ‘overwhelming support’ after violent assault

Drummer shares his thoughts following Florida attack

Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen has released his first public statement after being violently attacked last week in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The rocker shared a statement today (Sun, Mar 19th), nearly a week after the incident, thanking everyone for their support.

“Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support,” he writes on social media. “Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space. We are focusing on healing for everyone involved. We ask you to join us in our effort to move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy. We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people. To all of the fans, veterans, and first responders in our global community we are thinking of you all. Together with love, we can all get through these difficult times.”

On March 13th, Allen, who lost his left arm in a 1984 car accident, stepped outside the hotel for a cigarette when he was violently attacked by a 19 year old visiting from Ohio. A police report states Allen “hit his head on the ground causing injury.”

The band was in town following a performance the previously evening with Mötley Crüe at the Hard Rock Live in nearby Hollywood, FL.

A woman who was inside the hotel witnessed the incident and was attacked as well when she came to aid the fallen Allen.

The suspect was arrested after he was found at a nearby hotel breaking car windows.

Allen provided a sworn statement to police and plans to press charges. Allen has yet to speak publicly about the incident.

Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe are currently in the midst of their co-headlining The World Tour along with special guest Alice Cooper. The trek resumes in late May in the UK and Europe before returning to the US for a slew of shows in August.

Buddy Iahn
Buddy Iahn

Buddy Iahn founded The Music Universe when he decided to juxtapose his love of web design and music. As a lifelong drummer, he decided to take a hiatus from playing music to report it. The website began as a fun project in 2013 to one of the top independent news sites. Email: info@themusicuniverse.com