Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose was photographed leaving the same Atlanta-area rehearsal studio as rock icons AC/DC last Friday - just days after rumors claimed Rose would join the band on vocals for an upcoming tour. Rose will reportedly replace AC/DC singer Brian Johnson after Johnson was forced to stop touring for health reasons.
The Australian rockers announced earlier this month that Johnson, 68, was ordered to refrain from touring with the band immediately or he would be at risk of total hearing loss. Johnson, who joined AC/DC in 1980, attributed his hearing loss to sitting in a racecar without earplugs and not from his years fronting a rock group. The band was forced to postpone its March and April tour dates for this year.
Reports claim Rose will provide guest vocals for AC/DC and the band will serve as the opening act for Rose's group Guns N' Roses, who just teased cities for its own upcoming 21-date summer tour. Neither Rose nor AC/DC's reps have confirmed the news, but it is speculated that Rose met with current members Angus Young, Stevie Young, Cliff Williams and Chris Slade to either finalize a deal or rehearse AC/DC hits for the upcoming tour.
Rose has some big shoes to fill even though his own vocal style bears a resemblance to Johnson's iconic shrill tone. However, this isn't his first time singing AC/DC tunes. Guns N' Roses added a cover of AC/DC's 1977 hit "Whole Lotta Rosie" to its set and played the song live at various gigs between 1985-2014 and, in 2011, added the band's 1978 song "Riff Raff" to its repertoire.
Jason Bailey, an Atlanta-based radio DJ, revealed last week that "a very good source" confirmed that Rose already auditioned for the job and signed on to front AC/DC.
"This is what I'm being told, Axl was meeting with the AC/DC group, because it's all but a done deal that Axl will front AC/DC for the 10 remaining shows. All 10, including Atlanta," Bailey said.
No word yet on when AC/DC will reschedule the postponed March and April tour dates.
See the photo of Rose leaving the rehearsal space below.