GUNS N' ROSES Light Up Los Angeles Sky With 500-Drone Show Celebrating 2026 World Tour Announcement

GUNS N' ROSES lit up the Los Angeles skyline Monday night (November 24) with a stunning 500-drone show above Hollywood Forever Cemetery, produced in partnership with Sky Elements Drone Shows, to commemorate the announcement of the band's 2026 world tour.

The 12-minute display featured custom-programmed GN'R iconography, symbols, and references spanning the band's legendary career — culminating in a moment that signaled their return to the global stage, including a historic homecoming at the Rose Bowl on September 5, 2026, their first performance at the venue in over 30 years.

Kyle Pivnick, vice president, Sky Elements Drone Shows, said: "Sky Elements was honored to be a part of the GUNS N' ROSES world tour announcement. With 500 drones flying over the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, it was an iconic moment, and symbolic to the band's return to the world stage."

GUNS N' ROSES will launch its 2026 tour with dates in Mexico and Brazil in March and April, before heading to the U.S. for a pair of shows. They will then travel to Europe in June, followed by 18 more North American shows through September. The North American dates will kick off on July 23 in Raleigh and include stops in Toronto, St. Louis, Las Vegas and Atlanta. For the first time in more than 30 years, the band will take the stage at Pasadena, California's Rose Bowl.

The tour announcement came as GUNS N' ROSES is set to release two songs, "Nothin'" and "Atlas", on December 2 via Geffen. The tracks will be the band's first new song releases since 2023.

Embedded in popular culture, GUNS N' ROSES' landmark diamond-selling 1987 opus "Appetite For Destruction" stands out as "the best-selling U.S. debut album ever" and "the 11th best-selling U.S. album of all time." Following its release, GUNS N' ROSES shook the world with the one-two punch of the over seven-times-platinum "Use Your Illusion I" and "Use Your Illusion II", clinching the top two spots on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart upon arrival. With total sales of 100 million units thus far, their catalog also consists of "GN'R Lies" (five times platinum),"The Spaghetti Incident?" (platinum),"Greatest Hits" (five times platinum),and "Chinese Democracy" (over six million worldwide). Not to mention, they are one of the most-streamed rock bands in the world with an average of 27 million monthly listeners on Spotify and in May 2024 were inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame for their 1987 debut album, "Appetite For Destruction".

On the touring front, GUNS N' ROSES' legendary three-hour-plus shows encompass sought-after fan favorites in addition to newly dusted-off gems from their back catalog, leaving ardent audiences in awe. Their blockbuster 2024 world tour sold 1.3 million tickets around the world and marked the band's largest run to date. Consisting of acclaimed performances in stadiums and arenas alike, the tour included headlining festival dates at Glastonbury and London's Hyde Park, while the North American leg included sold-out performances at historic venues such as the Hollywood Bowl and MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, as well as a co-headlining performance at Power Trip in Indio, California with AC/DC and METALLICA. GUNS N' ROSES' previous world tour, "Not In This Lifetime…", notably ranked as the "fourth-highest grossing concert tour of all time", selling more than five million tickets and included a headline performance at Coachella. The band's massive 2025 tour saw the powerhouse band hit stadiums and arenas in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America throughout the year.

GUNS N' ROSES are Axl Rose (vocals, keyboards),Duff McKagan (bass),Slash (lead guitar),Dizzy Reed (keyboard),Richard Fortus (rhythm guitar),Isaac Carpenter (drums) and Melissa Reese (keyboard).