Fact Check: Imagine Dragons Weren’t Confirmed for IPL Closing Ceremony Performance
The American rock band simply participated in a promotional activity that was widely misreported by Indian media
Imagine Dragons at Lollapalooza India in Mumbai in January 2023. Photo: Courtesy of Lollapalooza India/Fleck Media
On May 26th, the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricketing tournament drew to a close with crores watching Kolkata Knight Riders clinch the trophy over Sun Risers Hyderabad. The Twenty20 tournament has always been known for bringing glitz to India and on May 25th night, Indian media outlets began reporting that American band Imagine Dragons were all set to return to India to perform at the IPL 2024 closing ceremony at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai.
Hindustan Times, Mint, Times of India and News18 all carried similar news articles about the “Believer” and “Thunder” hitmakers – now releasing their sixth album Loom on June 28th – were to perform at the IPL closing ceremony on Sunday. Not only was the (fake) news announced very close to the actual date, it was likely made on the basis of a post on X (formerly Twitter) by broadcaster Star Sports on May 22nd.
If you were looking for the footage of this performance, you weren’t alone. Replies and quotes of the post from the broadcaster all over social media were expressing surprise and anger at being misinformed about a potential return from Imagine Dragons, especially as part of IPL 2024. “It was a huge lie. There was no closing ceremony, and I arrived at the stadium two hours early just to ensure I didn’t miss Imagine dragons performance. What a disappointment,” reads a YouTube comment.
The video by Star Sports misled fans by stating that Imagine Dragons were “coming for the final,” followed by the band’s frontman Dan Reynolds stating, “This is the stage, where we come alive.” Reynolds also talks about Indian cricketing great Virat Kohli and calls him “the god of all things,” while mentioning their previous India trip, when they headlined the inaugural edition of Lollapalooza India in Mumbai in January 2023. He’s joined by the band’s guitarist Wayne Sermon in the video, as they briefly mention that the India visit was “the highlight of our career.”
If that wasn’t packaged confusingly enough, the video closes with a very misleading poster for “Amul Cricket Live” with a promo photo of the band (with Latin artist J. Balvin, collaborator on a new version of their song “Eyes Closed,” although he’s not mentioned anywhere). It says “Imagine Dragons, May 26th, 6pm.”
The post from Star Sports was very much suggesting what was a make-believe performance by Imagine Dragons. The pun overkill post said, “Can you Imagine? They are ready to light up the night! From ‘Believer’ to ‘Bones’, get ready to feel ‘Natural’ as we face the ‘Thunder’ at the #IPL finale with @Imaginedragons. Tune into Cricket Live during #IPLFinal on 26th May, 6.00 PM onwards at Star Sports Network.”
Universal Music India has confirmed that there was no performance scheduled, which means that these announcements were all fabricated to draw more eyeballs to a sporting event that already brings in crores in viewership. Sure, IPL could’ve got Imagine Dragons – still as unlikely as that may seem – but the video featuring Reynolds and Sermon was part of promotional activity between the artists, IPL and Star Sports on the back of releasing “Eyes Closed.”
There’s even a second video as part of the promo that’s come out, with Kolkata Knight Riders’ Andre Russell asking a question for the band about favorite numbers. The curious case of Imagine Dragons’ second India performance was never meant to be more than a video Q&A with cricketers, it seems.
