Imagine Dragons star reveals 'nerve-wracking' career move as they make space history

Imagine Dragons have made global history after one of their songs became the first track to be broadcasted from the moon during an intense space mission with Lonestar

Imagine Dragons star Wayne Sermon has revealed the thoughts racing through his and his bandmates heads as they waited to make space history. The American pop rock band made history across the globe when their 2023 track Children of the Sky was broadcasted from the Moon during a test by space-tech company, Lonestar.

The company launched a rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on February 26 as part of a mission to build a data centre on the Moon. During the mission, the spacecraft beamed the record back to Earth – creating inter galactic history. Speaking about the bold move, Wayne exclusively told the Mirror: "We're all pretty fascinated by science, spacewalks and space exploration, it's something that I follow generally anyway.

"Being able to have something in some small way that had anything to do with being transmitted from the moon is kinda insane. We were following that, it was nerve-wracking, honestly, we were following the whole thing live and there was a moment where we weren't sure if it had landed or what was going on.

"It landed on its side or something but they were able to salvage the moon and able to transmit some things still. It ended up being successful in a lot of ways, so it was pretty amazing that we were able to be a part of that. It just feels pretty insane and I love it." He added: "I love that it was that song too, that song speaks so much to the human spirit of needing to explore and reaching for things, reaching to becoming a multi-planetary species, I think it's just an awesome thing to be a part of."

Wayne also revealed that he believes that there could be life outside of the Earth's galaxy. "It's almost certain that there's other life out there," he explained. This week, fans will see the band in a whole new light, with their concert at the iconic Hollywood Bowl being broadcasted in cinemas across the UK.

"Iconic is certainly the word," Wayne joked about their performance. He went on to add: "Last time I was there, I saw Billy Joel there, it's probably my favourite venue in the world. It just seems there isn't a bad seat in the house and I don't know, there's just something very special about it.

"We kind of saw it in the schedule months in advance and we kept eying it every so often, we'd think 'Man, the Hollywood Bowl, we ended up selling four shows, it's marking the end of the North American run, maybe we should do something special for it,' we had the idea of doing an orchestra and that was the term of the idea of it all, things escalated from there. What started as doing three or four songs with a 20 piece orchestra mutated into something a little crazier."

The trio partnered up with Inon Zur for their performance with Wayne explaining that he and his bandmate Dan Reynolds had grown up admiring the composer who is behind some of the biggest soundtracks for films, television and video games. "It was a dream to work with him," Wayne gushed.

But while they had plans for three to four songs, Inon's "insatiable" drive and ambition resulted in the whole performance being arranged with the LA Film Orchestra. But the move to release the footage into cinemas for fans was a decision they instantly jumped at. "We basically heckled our manager long enough until he was able to find the willing partner to agree to do it at short notice," he laughed.

While historically, artists would often release their concerts on DVD or a TV special, most have moved away from this now, with fans who are unable to attend concerts often watching short clips on platforms such as TikTok – something that Wayne feels strongly about as he first watched Metallica play with the San Francisco symphony through their decision to film the show.

Having formed in 2008, the band have gone on to break barriers, with Dan phoning Wayne at 4am to reveal that they had been signed. "Playing with Kendrick Lamar at the Grammys was amazing," Wayne added of his highlights from the past almost two decades. "We played for like 90,000 people in Rock in Rio, which was insane," he went on to say: "Doing Reading and Leeds Festival for the first time, playing Glastonbury - it was all muddy, it was a disaster of weather that year, little moments like that poke out to me, just off hand, those are all highlights."

Despite selling over 46 million albums and 55 million singles across the globe, Wayne revealed that early on in their career that things may not go to plan for them and they had an "uphill battle," and it would be "impossible" for them to break barriers. But Robert Reynolds, Dan's brother – who managed The Killers revealed he believed in the band. "That's sound advice and it's pretty much true," Wayne reflected.

Although they had this advice, the band "did it" despite all the odds against them. "Not much has changed that way, it is difficult to be a musician now," he said, noting that social media and digital streaming platforms have changed the landscape for musicians. "The fact of the matter is, they're going to do it no matter what. People like me, who were further down the road, they're going to do it no matter what. Just like we did, despite the odds," he proudly revealed.

Over the years, the band have always been extremely open about their mental health, with Dan opening up about his own battle with depression and anxiety. "Dan and I are very similar in a lot of ways," Wayne said, explaining that they complement one another in "a lot of ways which has been good for the band."

"I feel like that dynamic has been really good because you absolutely need someone like Dan," he said, noting that Dan can be a bit more impulsive than himself. Wayne explained that he knew "early on" that Dan was a "special character," adding that the first time he saw him on stage, he knew he had that "intangible" spirting "flowing through him."

In a candid discussion, he said: "We have both suffered from depression and had difficulties growing up, fitting in and finding friends, it's been a bit of a battle that way. So when the things that he's struggled through, his own depression, the road is a very challenging place, even for someone who's very well adjusted.

"Throw in 150 - 200 tour dates a year, those foundations can get shaky very quick. We've been very lucky to have each other. We feel like a band of brothers and it's us versus the world – it's always felt that way, we have each other's backs, even in the darkest moments. We've always been each others shoulders to cry on, not that we cry and cry that often, but, I guess more metaphorically, we've been that to each other."

"We survive together, it's been almost 20 years as a band, we're still going and have strong relationships with each other," he gushed over his best friend before continuing: "We still love each other, we're still brothers together. I count him among my closest friends in this world, it's a pretty lucky thing and it's pretty rare, especially in this industru, so we hold on that pretty tightly."

Ahead of their forthcoming album and tour, Wayne admits the band are now "enjoying the ride and shows" and performing for people. "We feel a bit more confident in what we are and what we provide to people, it just feels like we all have to prove less. Maybe that comes with getting older or maturing, just a bit more comfortable in our own shoes."

Imagine Dragons: Live From The Hollywood Bowl will be screening across the UK on 26 and 29 March. Tickets are on sale now at imaginedragonsmovie.com.

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