Airbourne frontman O’Keeffe 'humbled' by AC/DC calls

Airbourne drummer Ryan O’Keeffe says his brother Joel wash “humbled” when some fans wanted him to front AC/DC.

His name was mentioned as a possible replacement for frontman Brian Johnson, who was forced to step back from AC/DC or risk going deaf earlier this year.

His place was eventually taken by Guns N’ Roses singer Axl Rose for the remainder of their Rock Or Bust tour – and while Joel never got the call, Ryan says he would have done it in a heartbeat if the opportunity arose.

He tells The Metal Voice: “He wasn’t officially approached but he was humbled by a lot of comments with some people saying he should do it.

“He said, ‘If that ever happened, the first thing I’d do is call Brian and get his permission and the second thing I’d do is call a cab to the airport.’”

Last week, Airbourne released an explicit video for their track Rivalry which features on their fourth album Breakin’ Outta Hell which launched last month.

It’s become Airbourne’s biggest chart success, topping the Canadian Official Hard Music Chart, reaching no.3 in Austria, no.4 in Switzerland, no.8 on the US Official Hard Music Chart and no.13 in Australia.

Airbourne are currently on tour in support of the follow-up to 2013’s Black Dog Barking.

Airbourne tour dates 2016

Oct 11: Cambridge Middle East Restaurant and Nightclub, MA
Oct 12: New York Gramercy, NY
Oct 14: Baltimore Soundstage, MD
Oct 19: Herning Jyske Bank Boxen, Denmark
Oct 20: Malmo Arena, Sweden
Oct 21: Gothenburg Scandinavium, Sweden
Oct 22: Stockholm Ericsson Globe, Sweden
Oct 24: Helsinki Hartwall Arena, Finland
Oct 26: Oslo Spektrum, Norway
Oct 27: Copenhagen Forum, Denmark
Oct 28: Hamburg Barclaycard Arena, German
Oct 28: Hamburg Barclaycard Arena, Germany
Oct 29: Berlin Mercedes-Benz Arena, Germany
Oct 31: Munich Olympiahall, Germany
Nov 01: Linz Tipps Arena, Austria
Nov 02: Vienna Stadhalle, Austria
Nov 04: Innsbruck Olympiahalle, Austria
Nov 05: Geneva Arena, Switzerland
Nov 07: Stuttgart Schlayerhalle, Germany
Nov 08: Zurich Hallenstadion, Switzerland
Nov 09: Cologne Lanxess, Germany
Nov 10: Frankfurt Festhalle, Germany
Nov 12: Leipzig Arena, Germany
Nov 13: Oberhausen Koenig-Pilsener Arena, Germany
Nov 14: Brussels Forest National, Belgium
Nov 15: Amsterdam Ziggo Dome, Netherlands
Nov 17: Portsmouth Pyramids, UK
Nov 18: Norwich UEA, UK
Nov 19: Nottingham Rock CIty, UK
Nov 21: Birmingham O2 Institute, UK
Nov 22: Leeds O2 Academy, UK
Nov 23: Newcastle O2 Academy, UK
Nov 24: Glasgow Barrowland, UK
Nov 26: Manchester O2 Ritz, UK
Nov 28: London Electric Ballroom, UK
Nov 29: London Electric Ballroom, UK

Airbourne’s Joel O’Keeffe injured in Canadian stage fall

Scott has spent 37 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, highlights deals, and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more. Over the last 12 years, Scott has written more than 11,500 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from news and features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.