Bobby Liebling has been fronting Pentagram for over fifty years, but it was a meme, not the music, that finally made him a household name.
Instead, it was a spaced-out moment on stage that launched the doom metal legend into viral territory when a TikTok video of him staring blankly mid-set exploded online. Since then, things have gotten weird for the Pentagram camp.
In a recent chat with Altars Of Metal, Liebling opened up about the bizarre fallout from the sudden internet fame. According to him, it hasn’t really boosted Pentagram ticket sales because most shows were already sold out, but the attention has turned everyday life into chaos.
“The whole thing flipped me out at first,” Liebling said. “It was pretty weird. I always had this dream of maybe someday I can have a post on Instagram or Facebook, and it will be viral. And it was like… Jesus, wow. Careful what you wish for.”
The real twist? He’s now rolling out of Pentagram gigs under police protection.
“People are clawing, trying to get through crowds. And you got police escorts surrounding you to get to a van when you leave a gig. It was wild, man. It still is,” he said.
It’s not just fans after shows either. Liebling says he’s being stopped everywhere — by airport TSA agents, pilots, soccer moms, and even kids — all wanting to know if he’s that guy from the video.
The clip might have been a meme, but it turned Liebling into something of a cult icon overnight. And while the band’s touring numbers haven’t skyrocketed as a result, Pentagram’s profile has definitely hit a new peak.
If you’ve yet to catch what to some is powerful wizard energy, but to others is how they feel after a big night out, check it out here:
Becoming famous for zoning out on stage wasn’t the plan, but in the world of doom metal, stranger things have happened.
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