IRON MAIDEN's ADRIAN SMITH: 'I Think We're Enjoying Playing Live As Much, If Not More Than Ever'

In a new interview with Peru's Radio Oxigeno, IRON MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith was asked how he and his bandmates are doing nowadays, more than 50 years since bassist Steve Harris founded MAIDEN in late 1975. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "How's anyone doing after 50 years? It's a long time. But we're still together, we're still friends, and we've had our ups and downs. But I have to say, I think we're enjoying playing live as much, if not more than ever. And the audiences are just getting better. We're getting more younger fans, new blood into the audience. It's fantastic. Fantastic."

On the topic of what he would tell himself, if he could go back in time and talk to the 24-year Adrian, who joined MAIDEN in 1980, about what to expect in the ensuing five decades, Smith said: "Great question. Write a letter to your younger self. I'd probably say, 'Hey, it's only rock and roll. Don't take it so seriously. Don't take everything to heart. Don't worry so much.' But then you think, if I hadn't have been like that, maybe I wouldn't still be doing it today. You have to push yourself. You have to go through different things, different troubles and strifes. I was always very hard on myself. I came into the band, and the band was big pretty quickly. But that's what I'd tell myself if I was young."

Adrian also talked about IRON MAIDEN's ongoing "Run For Your Lives" world tour, which features a "classic-era" setlist consisting of material from the band's first nine albums, from the 1980 debut album to 1992's "Fear Of The Dark". Asked what it has been like "dusting off and playing tracks that were out of the setlist for years", Adrian said: "Yeah, the first song we do is 'Murders In The Rue Morgue'. I think that's from the 'Killers' album, which is way, way back. And we're doing some stuff off the first album, which I didn't play on. The music hasn't changed, so, yeah, we can take songs from any era and make them work in a modern setting. And together with the show we have, it just takes you through that period of the band to bring it all to life. And it's great fun playing the old stuff. It just brings back some great memories. And when we started rehearsing, it's like riding a bike. You pretty much... It's in the brain, in the muscle memory, so you remember the songs easily."

After the interviewer noted that the international press described "Run For Your Lives" as "almost a cinematic experience", with the members of MAIDEN performing "with more energy and power than ever", Adrian said: "Well, people are saying that. We can only do what we do. I feel physically better than I probably did in my 20s. So now we have to pace ourselves a bit more. Because I think the band is still putting out the energy. We just do it — we just have to be sensible about the schedule. But I think the music kind of demands that we put a lot of energy into the shows."

Asked what it means for MAIDEN to see different generations at the band's concerts singing every song, Adrian said: "It's amazing. I often wonder, when I see young kids... I mean, you get three generations. You get a man, his son and his son's son at the gig. You get little seven- or eight-year-old kids."

Smith also talked about the musical chemistry between him and fellow MAIDEN guitarist Dave Murray. He said: "Well, we became friends when we were 14, 15 years old. I think that's around the age where you gotta start thinking what you wanna do with your life and some sort of path to choose for yourself. We became friends and we realized we wanted the same things, and that created a bond. 'Cause none of the other kids we knew felt the same, as passionate about music as we did. I think Dave probably said the same thing. So, we've come a long way together. We separated, we had our own paths, and then we came together, so I suppose it was meant to be. But we do have a good understanding."

As previously reported, IRON MAIDEN will return to North America in 2027 for a third and final leg of its 50th anniversary "Run For Your Lives" tour. The band will conclude the leg with two festival headline performances at Sonic Temple and Boardwalk Rock.

The surprise run of 16 spring shows follows MAIDEN's recent North American tour, which ended in late September.

Prior to the latest tour announcement, MAIDEN was expected to go on hiatus after wrapping up the 2026 leg of the "Run For Your Lives" tour, which is scheduled to run through the end of November.

MAIDEN said in a press release that "these shows will definitely be the last" on the "Run For Your Lives" tour, which will have included 107 concerts in 36 countries, playing to well over three million fans.

Smith was born in Hackney, East London, on February 27, 1957. He joined IRON MAIDEN at the end of 1980. Adrian is the bandmember who has collaborated on the most side projects outside of IRON MAIDEN, as well as writing and recording a series of albums in the early '90s, before rejoining the band. Onstage, Adrian uses Jackson and Gibson guitars. Offstage, he is an avid tennis player. However, his main hobby is fishing.

IRON MAIDEN is among the artists who will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame this year. The ceremony will take place on November 14 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. It will air on ABC and Disney+ the following month.