Ghost frontman Tobias Forge has opened up about the time he suffered a terrifying panic attack while performing onstage roughly 10 years ago — a scare that’s led him to rethink his approach to playing unfamiliar venues.
In a new interview with Metal Hammer, Forge recalled the moment that resulted in Ghost pausing a concert in the UK back in 2015.
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“Throughout my years in in masks, I’ve developed a not comfortable claustrophobia,” he said. “It’s the idea of having something over your throat, being completely engulfed, completely enclosed.”
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That claustrophobia turned into panic during the aforementioned 2015 gig at Leeds Beckett University. Midway through a performance of the song “Con Clavi Con Dio,” Forge exited the stage and removed his costume — the first time he’d ever done so. As the singer explained, this took place around the time of the tragic November 2015 Bataclan shooting in Paris.
“It had never really happened to me before, but I was walking into the venue, and this is, this is very close to the Bataclan shooting,” he said. “We went into the venue, and it was raining outside, big surprise, absolutely pissing down. I was told there was only one entrance into the venue; you had to walk in on the right side of the stage, past the stage, and then into a backstage area.”
He continued: “So, essentially, you couldn’t get out. You were locked in. That was what I was told. And I didn’t think of it until during the show, when all of a sudden I was like, ‘I need to know where the door is… I can’t get to the door. Stop! Stop! Get the mask off!’ I had to get everything off. Restart the whole thing.”
Forge was then directed by a security guard to a second exit at the venue, alleviating his fears.
“There was absolutely a way out,” he said. “And then it became a thing [for future shows]: I need to know where the door out is. I need to know how I get out. As long as I know how to get out, we’re good.”
Forge said that he hasn’t had any problems or recurring panic attacks since the Leeds gig. He’s also limited his claustrophobia with a different costume, as his current Ghost outfit as Papa V Perpetua covers less of his face, mouth, and throat area.
He’ll be donning that attire in a few months time when Ghost hits the road for a Winter 2026 North American tour. The month-long trek runs throughout January and February, and you can get tickets here.