A young B.C. musician had the opportunity of a lifetime when she joined her favourite band on stage in Vancouver last weekend.
16-year-old Madi Duncan from Port Alberni is the lead singer of a local teen rock band . She was invited up on stage by Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and drummer Taylor Hawkins during a cover of Queen and David Bowie鈥檚 鈥淯nder Pressure.鈥� Grohl took over on drums while Hawkins and Madi shared vocals.
Madi鈥檚 father, Craig Duncan, said Madi is a huge fan of the Foo Fighters and has been following them for years.
鈥淚t took lots of hard work on her part,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat was her dream.鈥�
The Foo Fighters have invited guests on stage to cover 鈥淯nder Pressure鈥� in the past, including Queen鈥檚 Roger Taylor. Madi was prepared on Saturday with a Queen t-shirt and a poster that read, 鈥淧ick me.鈥� By hanging out at the stadium in the afternoon, Madi was able to meet Hawkins and discuss the possibility of coming up on stage later that evening.
鈥淲e worked our butts off to get her to the stage front,鈥� said Craig. 鈥淪he got her sign up there and Dave [Grohl] saw it. The rest is history.鈥�
Madi has been part of Stranger Than Fiction for the past two years, but has been performing 鈥渇orever,鈥� said Craig. She took piano lessons as a child and also plays drums in the Alberni District Secondary School band. She joined Alberni Teens Can Rock a few years ago to play the drums, but organizer Todd Flaro discovered she could also play guitar and ukulele and got her started on singing.
鈥淪he鈥檚 used to performing, so she wasn鈥檛 afraid to sing in front of 18,000 people,鈥� Craig laughed.
Craig said he believes Madi is the first girl who has joined the band on stage. She was high-fived and congratulated by other concert-goers after her performance.
鈥淪he was the superstar after that,鈥� he said.
Madi took to her Instagram account after the experience to thank the Foo Fighters and explain how their music has helped her struggles with mental illness.
鈥淚 am extraordinarily grateful for this amazing opportunity,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 had no clue that it was even gonna happen. I didn鈥檛 think it was gonna happen.鈥�
