Breaking Down the Bizarre Conspiracy Theory That Zac Brown Band's Sphere Shows are “Satanic Rituals”

After a momentous opening weekend of shows at Sphere Las Vegas, fans have been expressing their thoughts on Zac Brown Band's histrionic, dramatic production. While are praising the group's trademark innovation, a number have been criticising the dark imagery and scary, skeleton-themed visuals as being “demonic”.

On all of the band's social media posts recapping their first few Sphere Las Vegas shows, fans have been flooding the comments with religious statements and bizarre claims that the production is anti-Christian, and may even be a “satanic ritual”.

The outrage has presumably been sparked from portions of the set, during which Brown dons a crown of bones while a skeletal figure looms behind him and towers over the crowd. The Sphere graphics plunge the audience into a fiery, hell-like place.

During his appearance on The Rich Eisen Show ahead of the residency, Brown teased that he'd be taking fans on a journey, “We’re also telling a story. It’ll be the first of its kind in that scenario. The title, Love and Fear, you can boil most of your decisions in your life based on one of those two things. I try not to base my decisions on fear, but on the love of doing something and believing that it’s a worthy cause. The juxtaposition that we get to create in the content of being able to be there”.

He expanded, “Every one of the human emotions, we’re gonna try to pull on that string. There’s horror, jump scare moments going on to soaring, beautiful things. A rise and fall of tension and release, kind of like the storms we all go through in life”.

In a separate interview with Morning Edition, the ‘Butterfly’ singer-songwriter explained that both the Sphere shows and the band's new studio album, Love & Fear, shed light on his traumatic childhood, “Unless someone knows me very well and is very close to me, I haven't shared a lot of what drove me into music. I grew up in a really crazy environment, in and out of battered women's shelters. And as a kid, trying to make sense of that, trying to protect my mom, trying to figure out what the hell is going on in my house or whatever, that drove me into music”.

As far as we can see from the clips from Sphere this past weekend, these dark, horror-centric visuals featuring the skeletons, crown of bones and the fiery depths of hell simply symbolise the harder periods in Brown's story. They serve as visceral metaphors for the harrowing experiences the Georgia native went through as a child.

It's worth pointing out, too, that these visuals would not be out of place at a heavy metal or rock concert. Some commentators have speculated that they've only touched a nerve because Zac Brown Band have a conservative-leaning country fanbase.

What's more, the ‘Knee Deep’ chart-toppers’ logo has always been a skeleton wearing Brown's signature wide-brimmed fedora, so it feels like the Sphere visuals are simply drawing on this. Various fans have clarified in the comments, too, that the dark, flame-filled visuals that start the show gradually become replaced by heavenly, idyllic graphics, with this seemingly representing a man's pursuit of Heaven.

Brown's music has always carried spiritual and faith-filled undertones, and it feels pertinent that he plays ‘The Sum’ and ’Remedy’ as two of the final songs in his Sphere setlist. Both tracks find Brown showcasing Jesus as a role model, with the latter celebrating the famous Golden Rule, as he spreads his message of love and unity.

It seems this is yet another instance of the “satanic panic” conspiracy, with many prominent Hollywood stars and musical artists regularly being accused of using their art as means for demonic practises and rituals. The Weeknd, Playboi Carti and Doja Cat have found themselves on the receiving end of this, due to dark undertones in their music and the incorporation of upside-down crosses, for instances.

The likes of Carti and Doja Cat have played into this, fuelling the conjecture and furore to the extent that it's now a regular interview question for both. But it feels like Zac Brown Band have innocently put together a cinematic show that tells an eerie and haunting story of redemption, and have found themselves at the centre of a mass outcry about potential satanic symbolism in their visuals. We think this is nothing more than a baseless conspiracy. Brown and his crew are yet to address these criticisms, but with reports emerging that Sphere sales are through the roof, perhaps they won't be too upset by the publicity it has sparked.

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Featured photo by Alive Coverage