DISTURBED's MIKE WENGREN: 'We Get To Touch People's Lives' With Our Music

In an interview with Spotlight Report conducted at this month's Knotfest Australia in Sydney, DISTURBED drummer Mike Wengren spoke about how sometimes fans will come up to him and his bandmates and say that one of their songs has helped them in some way or even saved their life. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, we always write songs from the heart and from the experiences that we go through ourselves. It's catharsis for us to be able to sing and perform those songs. And when fans just started to reach out, that they use these songs to help them get through their hardships, it brings the connection together for us. We write it so that we can heal, that we can cope with some of the hardships of life, and it's just a pretty incredible thing to be able to share that with everybody. And we get that message all the time. People say, 'I went through a really hard time of my life. I was divorced' or 'I had an addiction issue I was dealing with, and your song saved my life and helped me get through it.' I mean, that is the biggest compliment of all. It's not just that we get to write and perform music, but we get to touch people's lives. It's emotional. It's an incredible thing that we don't take for granted at all."

Earlier this month, DISTURBED garnered its 19th No. 1 on the Active Rock radio chart with "Don't Tell Me", the band's latest single, which features a guest appearance by Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee and HEART co-founder Ann Wilson. The song is DISTURBED's fourth No. 1 off the band's latest album, "Divisive".

This is the second time DISTURBED has earned four No. 1s on a single record, having previously accomplished the same feat on 2015's "Immortalized". Only nine rock albums since 1992 have been able to secure four No. 1 songs on the Mediabase Rock charts and two of them have been DISTURBED's.

Released in November 2022, "Divisive" was recorded earlier that year with producer Drew Fulk (MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, LIL PEEP, HIGHLY SUSPECT) in Nashville, Tennessee.

"Divisive" sold 26,000 equivalent album units in its first week of release, with 22,000 units via album sales. On the all-format Billboard 200 chart, "Divisive" debuted at No. 13.

DISTURBED has had five No. 1s on the all-genre chart, beginning with "Believe" in 2002.

According to Billboard, DISTURBED's "Take Back Your Life" summer 2023 tour grossed $17.4 million and sold 336,000 tickets.

DISTURBED averaged 11,573 tickets sold per show, up from 6,901 in 2019 and 4,404 in 2016. The average ticket price for the "Take Back Your Life" tour was $51.07.

DISTURBED's biggest headlining concert ever happened on September 2, 2023 at Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana, where the band drew more than 20,000 fans.