Singer Bebe Rexha suffered a head injury on stage when a fan threw a phone at her while performing on Sunday (June 18). The 33-year-old, real name Bleta Rexha, was in the middle of her performance on the Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York City when a cell phone flew from the audience and hit her in the face. The ‘Back to You’ singer then collapses to her knees as crew members rush in to assist her. The show was subsequently halted. A viral video shared online shows the star holding her face as she slumps in pain. Fans can be heard cursing at the man responsible for the attack in the background.
A man was arrested at the scene and charged with assault, police say. According to authorities, 27-year-old Nicolas Malvagna ‘intentionally’ threw the cell phone at Rexha, who was singing onstage.
In footage of the incident that has gone viral, Rexha is seen walking toward the front of the stage when a cell phone flies from the crowd and hits her in the face. She then falls to her knees as the crowd roars with disbelief. ‘Great show ruined by this person throwing their phone at @BebeRexha Hope she is okay after that,’ one Twitter user wrote alongside the clip of the incident.
The clip then cuts to a close-up of Rexha’s face, revealing that she has a black eye and a laceration above her left eyebrow. The star took to TikTok and Instagram Monday to share two photos of her injuries with the captions: “Im good, you guys.”
Rexha’s mother also took to social media to reveal that her daughter had received three stitches due to the attack. She added that her recovery will be long, but her mother is doing well. The star is currently in the middle of her Best F’n Night of My Life tour, which has stops in Philadelphia, Washington DC, and Atlanta, among others.
It needs to be clarified whether the incident will impact the remaining tour dates. There has been a recent trend for fans to throw their phones onstage, hoping that artists will pick up and return them. Harry Styles was famously hit in the eye with a handful of Skittles by a fan during a gig in Los Angeles last year.
