JFK (live)

59%	MuseWiki ULD has 66/112 performances of this song.

This page contains a list of all known performances of JFK.

Analysis and Explanation

Played from tape as an intro before songs, JFK is technically the oldest song on Drones. The band played JFK live on the 2007 tour as an intro to the concert or the encore, usually before Knights of Cydonia or Take a Bow. This version contained no orchestra or other backing instrumentation and was significantly longer than the Drones version.

The version from Drones made it's debut in June 2015 at the start of the Drones Festival Tour and was used as an intro at almost every gig in 2015 and 2016. While on the album the track is played before Defector, live the song was used as an intro for many different songs. At most of the concerts during the Drones Festivals Tour in 2015 it was played at the start of the encore before Uprising. The song was played at every Drones World Tour show from 2015-16, played around two-thirds into the set, and it was used as an intro for many different songs. These included; Revolt, Reapers, Stockholm Syndrome, Interlude + Hysteria, Assassin (once) and, much later into the tour, Defector as on the album.

The song is mainly played from tape live and thus sounded similar to the album version, though some variation took place. The Drones Festival Tour performances in 2015 differ from the album version, featuring synth like guitar accompaniment from Matt, instead of the distorted guitar notes on the album. During the Drones World Tour however, the album version with the orchestra backing was played live instead; however at some dates it was played with no backing instrumentation at all, similar to 2007.

Since the ending of the Drones World Tour, JFK has been played only at Glastonbury 2016, before Interlude + Hysteria. It came back in 2023 for the Will of the People World Tour in Chicago, on the first gig of the North American leg, with the Simulation Theory Theme played in the background of the speech.

Please submit dead links/issues here.

Will of the People era

2023

#	Date	Venue	Location	Intro of	Link
5	2023-03-03	Dickies Arena	Fort Worth, TX, USA	Kill or Be Killed
4	2023-03-02	Toyota Center	Houston, TX, USA		Watch here
3	2023-02-28	Moody Center	Austin, TX, USA		Watch here
2	2023-02-26	Target Center	Minneapolis, MN, USA
1	2023-02-25	United Center	Chicago, IL, USA		Watch here

Drones era

2016

#	Date	Venue	Location	Intro of	Link
67	2016-06-24	Worthy Farm (Glastonbury Festival)	Pilton, UK	Interlude + Hysteria
66	2016-06-21	Olimpiski	Moscow, Russia	Stockholm Syndrome	Watch here
65	2016-06-17	Žalgirio Arena	Kaunas, Lithuania	Interlude + Hysteria
64	2016-06-16	Riga Arena	Riga, Latvia
63	2016-06-14	Hartwall Arena	Helsinki, Finland
62	2016-06-12	Telenor Arena	Oslo, Norway	Defector
61	2016-06-11	Ericsson Dome	Stockholm, Sweden
60	2016-06-09	Forum	Copenhagen, Denmark
59	2016-06-08	Forum	Copenhagen, Denmark	Stockholm Syndrome
58	2016-06-06	Barclaycard Arena	Hamburg, Germany	Interlude + Hysteria
57	2016-06-04	O2 Arena	Prague, Czech Republic	Revolt
56	2016-06-03	Mercedes Benz Arena	Berlin, Germany	Defector
55	2016-05-21	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy
54	2016-05-20	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy	Interlude + Hysteria
53	2016-05-18	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy	Revolt
52	2016-05-17	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy	Defector
51	2016-05-15	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy	Stockholm Syndrome
50	2016-05-14	Mediolanum Forum	Milan, Italy	Defector
49	2016-05-12	Hallenstadion	Zurich, Switzerland		Watch here
48	2016-05-11	Hallenstadion	Zurich, Switzerland	Revolt
47	2016-05-09	Wiener Stadthalle	Vienna, Austria	Interlude + Hysteria
46	2016-05-06	Barclaycard Center	Madrid, Spain	Stockholm Syndrome
45	2016-05-05	Barclaycard Center	Madrid, Spain	Interlude + Hysteria
44	2016-05-03	MEO Arena	Lisbon, Portugal	Stockholm Syndrome
43	2016-05-02	MEO Arena	Lisbon, Portugal	Interlude + Hysteria
42	2016-04-30	Ischgl Ski Resort (Top Of The Mountain)	Ischgl, Austria	Uprising
41	2016-04-18	SSE Hydro	Glasgow, Scotland	Interlude + Hysteria
40	2016-04-17	SSE Hydro	Glasgow, Scotland	Stockholm Syndrome
39	2016-04-15	O2 Arena	London, England
38	2016-04-14	O2 Arena	London, England	Assassin
37	2016-04-12	O2 Arena	London, England	Interlude + Hysteria
36	2016-04-11	O2 Arena	London, England
35	2016-04-09	Manchester Arena	Manchester, England	Revolt
34	2016-04-08	Manchester Arena	Manchester, England	Interlude + Hysteria
33	2016-04-06	The SSE Arena	Belfast, Northern Ireland	Stockholm Syndrome
32	2016-04-05	3Arena	Dublin, Ireland	Interlude + Hysteria
31	2016-04-03	O2 Arena	London, England
30	2016-04-02	Barclayard Arena	Birmingham, England	Stockholm Syndrome
29	2016-03-31	Olympiahalle	Munich, Germany
28	2016-03-16	Palais 12	Brussels, Belgium	Interlude + Hysteria	Watch here
27	2016-03-15	Palais 12	Brussels, Belgium		Watch here
26	2016-03-13	Palais 12	Brussels, Belgium	Reapers	Watch here
25	2016-03-12	Palais 12	Brussels, Belgium	Revolt	Watch here
24	2016-03-10	Ziggo Dome	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Reapers	Watch here
23	2016-03-09	Ziggo Dome	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Stockholm Syndrome	Watch here
22	2016-03-07	Ziggo Dome	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Revolt	Watch here
21	2016-03-06	Lanxess Arena	Cologne, Germany	Reapers	Watch here
20	2016-03-04	Bercy Arena	Paris, France		Watch here
19	2016-03-03	Bercy Arena	Paris, France	Revolt	Watch here
18	2016-03-01	Bercy Arena	Paris, France	Reapers	Watch here
17	2016-02-29	Bercy Arena	Paris, France		Watch here
16	2016-02-27	Bercy Arena	Paris, France	Revolt	Watch here
15	2016-02-26	Bercy Arena	Paris, France	Reapers	Watch here
14	2016-02-01	Verizon Center	Washington, DC, USA
13	2016-01-31	Wells Fargo Center	Philadelphia, PA, USA		Watch here
12	2016-01-29	Prudential Center	Newark, NJ, USA		Watch here
11	2016-01-27	Barclays Center	Brooklyn, NY, USA		Watch here
10	2016-01-25	TD Garden	Boston, MA, USA		Watch here
9	2016-01-23	Centre Vidéotron	Quebec City, QC, Canada
8	2016-01-21	Centre Bell	Montréal, QC, Canada	Revolt
7	2016-01-20	Centre Bell	Montréal, QC, Canada	Reapers	Watch here
6	2016-01-18	Centre Vidéotron	Québec City, QC, Canada		Watch here
5	2016-01-16	Air Canada Centre	Toronto, ON, Canada		Watch here
4	2016-01-14	Joe Louis Arena	Detroit, MI, USA		Watch here
3	2016-01-13	United Center	Chicago, IL, USA		Watch here
2	2016-01-09	Mandalay Bay	Las Vegas, NV, USA		Watch here
1	2016-01-07	Valley View Casino Center	San Diego, CA, USA		Watch here

2015

#	Date	Venue	Location	Intro of	Link
31	2015-12-19	Staples Center	Los Angeles, CA, USA	Reapers	Watch here
30	2015-12-18	Staples Center	Los Angeles, CA, USA	Revolt	Watch here
29	2015-12-15	Oracle Arena	Oakland, CA, USA		Watch here
28	2015-12-13	Moda Center	Portland, OR, USA		Listen here
27	2015-12-12	KeyArena	Seattle, WA, USA		Watch here
26	2015-12-10	Rogers Arena	Vancouver, BC, Canada
25	2015-12-05	Gila River Arena	Phoenix, AZ, USA		Watch here
24	2015-12-02	American Airlines Center	Dallas, TX, USA		Watch here
23	2015-12-01	Toyota Center	Houston, TX, USA		Watch here
22	2015-11-21	Corona Capital Festival	Mexico City, Mexico
21	2015-11-20	Palacio de los Deportes	Mexico City, Mexico		Watch here
20	2015-11-18	Palacio de los Deportes	Mexico City, Mexico		Watch here
19	2015-11-17	Palacio de los Deportes	Mexico City, Mexico		Watch here
18	2015-09-16	Ancienne Belgique	Brussels, Belgium	Defector	Watch here
17	2015-09-13	Lollapalooza Berlin	Berlin, Germany	Uprising	Watch here
16	2015-07-13	Musilac Music Festival	Aix-les-Bains, France		Watch here
15	2015-07-11	Bilbao BBK Live	Bilbao, Spain		Watch here
14	2015-07-09	NOS Alive! Festival	Lisbon, Portugal		Watch here
13	2015-07-05	Rock-A-Field	Roeser, Luxembourg		Watch here
12	2015-07-04	Main Square Festival	Arras, France		Watch here
11	2015-07-02	Roskilde Festival	Roskilde, Denmark		Watch here
10	2015-06-28	Rock Werchter Festival	Werchter, Belgium		Watch here
9	2015-06-26	Bravalla Festival	Norrköping, Sweden
8	2015-06-24	Provinssirock Festival	Seinäjoki, Finland
7	2015-06-14	Orange Festival	Warsaw, Poland		Watch here
6	2015-06-13	Download Festival	Derby, England		Watch here
5	2015-06-12	Pinkpop Festival	Landgraaf, Netherlands		Watch here
4	2015-06-06	Sonisphere	Biel, Switzerland		Watch here
3	2015-06-05	Rock in Vienna Festival	Vienna, Austria		Watch here
2	2015-05-30	Rock im Revier Festival	Gelsenkirchen, Germany		Watch here
1	2015-05-29	Rockavaria Festival	Munich, Germany		Watch here

Black Holes and Revelations era

2007

#	Date	Venue	Location	Intro of	Link
14	2007-09-22	Coors Amphitheatre (Street Scene)	Chula Vista, CA, USA	Take a Bow
13	2007-09-21	Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre	Irvine, CA, USA		Watch here
12	2007-09-20	Mesa Amphitheatre	Mesa, AZ, USA		Watch here
11	2007-09-18	Red Rocks Amphitheatre	Denver, CO, USA
10	2007-09-16	Nokia Theater	Grand Prairie, TX, USA		Watch here
9	2007-09-15	Zilker Metropolitan Park (City Limits)	Austin, TX, USA		Watch here
8	2007-09-12	McKay Events Center	Orem, UT, USA
7	2007-09-10	Rose Garden	Portland, OR, USA		Watch here
6	2007-09-09	KeyArena	Seattle, WA, USA		Watch here
5	2007-08-11	Agganis Arena	Boston, MA, USA	Knights of Cydonia	Watch here
4	2007-08-10	Festival Pier	Philadelphia, PA, USA		Watch here
3	2007-08-09	The Patriot Center	Fairfax, VA, USA		Watch here
2	2007-08-06	Madison Square Garden	New York City, NY, USA		Watch here
1	2007-08-04	Chicago Grant Park (Lollapalooza)	Chicago, IL, USA	Take a Bow	Watch here

Summary

Summary of JFK as an intro for each song. Songs highlighted in blue have strings played during JFK and songs highlighted in purple have the Simulation Theory Theme played during the speech.

Song Title	Plays	Appearance
Take a Bow	10	August 4th, 2007, September 9th, 2007 - September 22nd, 2007
Knights of Cydonia	4	August 6th, 2007 - August 11th, 2007
Uprising	18	May 29th, 2015 - September 13th, 2015, April 30th, 2016
Defector	9	September 16th, 2015, May 12th, 2016 - June 12th, 2016
Revolt	21	November 17th, 2015 - December 18th, 2015, January 21st, 2016, February 27th, 2016 - June 4th, 2016
Reapers	20	December 19th, 2015 - March 13th, 2016
Stockholm Syndrome	11	March 9th, 2016 - June 21st, 2016
Interlude + Hysteria	17	March 15th, 2016 - June 24th, 2016
Assassin	1	April 14th, 2016
Kill or Be Killed	1	February 25th, 2023 - present

Last update: February 26th, 2023

Note: Revolt, Reapers, Stockholm Syndrome, Interlude + Hysteria, Assassin and Defector were in rotation during the European leg of the Drones World Tour. Reapers left the rotation when it became a permanent song in the setlist starting March 15th, 2016, on the 3rd night in Brussels.

See also

This is a table of Drones-era live performances.

Note: white indicates performed at 75-100% of known setlists.

Gainsboro indicates performed at 50-75% of known setlists.

Silver indicates performed at 25-50% of known setlists.

Dark gray indicates performed at 0-25% of known setlists.

Black indicates no known performance that year.

Aqua indicates a performance in the current tour and year for which the final amount of performances is unknown.

Last updated: April 15, 2022.

Song Title	Release	2007	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2022	2023	#
Dead Inside	Drones	0	58	81	23	0	0	0	0	162
Drill Sergeant	Drones	0	43	23	34	12	61	28	56	257
Psycho	Drones	0	66	82	34	14	61	28	56	341
Mercy	Drones	0	57	82	33	8	59	0	0	239
Reapers	Drones	0	60	60	0	2	57	0	0	179
The Handler	Drones	0	41	79	11	5	57	0	0	192
JFK *	Drones	14	31	67	0	0	0	0	52	164
Defector	Drones	0	1	8	0	0	0	0	0	9
Revolt	Drones	0	12	10	0	0	0	0	0	22
Aftermath	Drones	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
The Globalist	Drones	0	13	80	17	0	0	0	0	110
Drones **	Drones	0	25	143	17	0	0	0	0	185

* JFK was played at a small amount of gigs in 2007 as intro music.

** Drones was played twice at every performance from its debut with three exceptions as of the last update. The actual total of gigs is highly inflated in comparison with other songs as a result. It has not been performed twice at festival dates, however, since the end of the 360 Tour in 2016.

Back to Number of Live Performances

---

<references>