ZACH MYERS Explains Why SHINEDOWN Stopped Doing Pre-Show Meet-And-Greets With Fans

During an appearance on the latest episode of the "Beardo & Weirdo" podcast, hosted by FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH bassist Chris Kael and comedian Craig Gass, SHINEDOWN guitarist Zach Myers was asked if it blows his mind that the music he and his bandmates created " has that same deep, deep emotional connection with people" as the music he grew up listening to. He said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yes. But it also at times doesn't feel real, because it's true. Your music does mean as much to you as Bruce Springsteen meant to me or U2 meant to me or Steve Ray Vaughan or whatever. But when it's you, it's hard to… I get a lot of imposter syndrome, so it's hard to go, 'Oh.' Like when people say, 'Dude, your song saved my life,' the computer just stops working for me. And I go, 'Oh, man.' And I don't want it to make it look like it goes in one ear and out the other, 'cause the truth is people saying those types of things to me are the reason we stop doing meet-and-greets. Because I've got kids, and I would go to a meet-and-greet…"

Zach continued: "We would do [our meet-and-greets] very different. Some people just do a photo line. It's, like, quick — in, out. We've toured with bands — they do 150 people in 30 minutes. It took us 90 minutes to do 40 people. 'Cause me and [SHINEDOWN singer] Brent [Smith] would start at one end, [SHINEDOWN bassist] Eric [Bass] and [SHINEDOWN drummer] Barry [Kerch] at the other, and we would just chat for five minutes with each person. And you'd get these people, and they would go, 'Man, I've got a seven-year-old boy. He died of cancer.' And I'm, like, under my shirt, texting my wife, like, 'Take our kid to the hospital right now.' She's, like, 'What? He's on the trampoline.' I'm, like, 'He might have cancer.' And God bless those people, and I want our songs to help them. I am man enough to admit I don't have the emotional barricade to not walk on stage with that. By the end of it — I think [it was] 2019 when we stopped doing meet-and-greets — I walked out of 11, just walked out. Because I was literally, like, I would start to tear up. And you go to the guy next to you, and he's, like, 'Dude, [I've] seen you guys 25 times, bro. Stoked to be here.' And you're, like, 'Sorry, man. I can't turn this off. I'm gonna think about this kid for a year.' And you feel for the families. But now what it's done for us, I think not doing them, is when you meet people out on the street, it becomes more real. It's not this formulative thing, the construct of a meet-and-greet. It's, like, they get to see the real you."

SHINEDOWN's eighth studio album, "Ei8ht", will arrive on May 29 via Atlantic Records.

SHINEDOWN recently announced a massive "Dance, Kid, Dance Act II" world tour, taking the band to 11 countries across 54 dates, including stops throughout North America and Europe at some of the world's biggest venues.

Joining SHINEDOWN on the massive worldwide tour will be COHEED AND CAMBRIA, BLACK STONE CHERRY, FROM ASHES TO NEW, DJ Rock Feed and THOSE DAMN CROWS on various dates.

The world tour adds to the band's first-ever curated festival event — Shinedown's Lunatic Ball Beach Weekend, taking place October 23-25, 2026 in Miramar Beach, Florida. The three-day destination experience will feature performances from SHINEDOWN (two unique headlining sets),BUSH, HANSON, FLYLEAF (with Lacey Sturm),LIVING COLOUR, FROM ASHES TO NEW, GUARDIANS OF THE JUKEBOX, NEON MOONERS and more.

Over the past year, SHINEDOWN released four major songs, "Dance, Kid, Dance", "Killing Fields", "Three Six Five" and "Searchlight", each reinforcing the band's position as one of the most powerful forces in modern music. "Dance, Kid, Dance" and "Killing Fields" both reached No. 1 at rock radio, while "Three Six Five" became a global crossover hit, topping No. 1 at Alternative radio, landing Top 10 at Hot AC and AC, and breaking into the Top 20 at Top 40. In the process, SHINEDOWN extended their record with the most No. 1 songs on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart history (with 21 No. 1's) and Mediabase's Active Rock chart (with 23 No. 1's),continuing a legacy built on consistency, ambition, and emotional connection.

SHINEDOWN is nominated at the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards for "Rock Artist Of The Year", "Duo/Group Of The Year" and "Rock Song Of The Year" for "Dance, Kid, Dance". These nominations follow a landmark showing at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards, where the band won both "Rock Artist Of The Year" and "Rock Song Of The Year" for "A Symptom Of Being Human", marking the second consecutive year SHINEDOWN has been recognized among the genre's top honors.