Jason Aldean hit in head by thrown cup at Wichita show

Jason Aldean’s third trip to Wichita will be memorable for him – but not in a good way.

Late in his Thursday-night concert, which attracted 9,000 people to Intrust Bank Arena, someone near the stage tossed a cup of beer at Aldean, and it smacked him squarely in the side of the head.

The offender was escorted from the building, and tour managers declined to press charges, said Capt. Dave Mattingly of the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office.

The man told the deputy on duty at the concert that he was just trying to get Aldean’s attention to share some good news.

“The incident entails a person who had been drinking who had a cup of beer and wanted to get Jason Aldean’s attention to let him know that his friend, who was also at the concert, had just gotten engaged and he wanted Aldean to somehow acknowledge it on stage,” Mattingly said.

Aldean was in the middle of performing “Don’t You Wanna Stay,” his hit duet with Kelly Clarkson, and he was not pleased.

He stopped singing – though a projected image of Clarkson singing her harmony continued – and he stared angrily in the crowd. He pointed at the offender and slowly shook his head “no.” Then Aldean walked closer to the crowd, still pointing, motioning to security guards.

It took Aldean a while to recover. He half-heartedly finished the song while fidgeting with his earpiece, which he eventually removed and gave to a roadie. During the next break in the concert, Aldean addressed the incident.

“It took everything I had not to go kick that guy’s teeth in,” he told the audience.

Intrust Bank Arena spokeswoman Christine Pileckas couldn’t say much about the tossed beer. Aldean finished the show and did not appear to be injured.

“It’s unfortunate and disappointing for both the venue and the artist to see a fan act in such a manner,” Pileckas said in a statement.

Such events are not common at Intrust Bank Arena, but they are a bit of an occupational hazard for singers. In October, country singer Dustin Lynch – playing at an event called Boggy Bayou Mullet Festival in Niceville, Fla. – was hit in the head by a beer can and required stitches.

Justin Bieber was famously “bottled” in 2009 at the Jingle Ball concert in Sacramento, Calif., but finished his show. He also was hit by a water bottle in 2013 while performing in Brazil and walked off stage, ending the show.

And in 2012, Red Hot Chili Peppers singer Anthony Kiedis was hit with a water bottle during a show in Dallas.

This story was originally published April 10, 2015 at 11:04 AM with the headline "Jason Aldean hit in head by thrown cup at Wichita show."