Trophy Eyes Fan Details Terrifying Moment She Became Partially Paralyzed After Musician's Stage Dive

Two weeks after becoming partially paralyzed when the frontman of Trophy Eyes crowd-surfed at a Buffalo concert, Bird Piché reacted to the incident and its aftermath.

By Brahmjot Kaur May 14, 2024 6:39 PMTags
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Bird Piché is sharing her story.

Two weeks after the 24-year-old suffered "a catastrophic spinal cord injury" as a result of Trophy Eyes frontman John Floreani landing on her while stage-diving during a concert she recounted the harrowing moment.

"It was, like, his body and my neck," Piché told NBC News in an interview published May 13. "It was a crowd-surfing thing."

She added that she never blacked out, recalling how Floreani leaped backward into the crowd during the April 30 show in Buffalo, New York. But as a longtime fan of the Australian rock band, Piché wasn't a stranger to the popular rock concert antics. 

"It's pretty typical at these kinds of shows," she continued. "I didn't really know what to expect, but I definitely didn't expect to be in a hospital after the concert."

The incident left her family reeling as they rushed to the hospital, as her mom Amy Leigh Flaminio told NBC News, "We were even worried she wasn't going to make it." Piché has since regained use of her arms and some leg function but not her hands and toes, per the publication.

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Trophy Eyes' cut their show short after the incident as Floreani accompanied Piché to the hospital, the band—who donated $5,000 to her GoFundMe—shared on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

"Out of respect for the family, we have refrained from speaking about this publicly so far, but with the blessing of their family, we are now able to say how truly heartbroken we are to be here," the group's May 3 statement continued. "This situation has shaken us all to our core, and we ask for patience while we look to help Bird navigate this difficult time.

Bird Piché

E! News has reached out to reps for Trophy Eyes and has not heard back.

Piché's family declined to comment to NBC News on whether they would consider pursuing civil action and are more focused on her road to recovery. And the Planned Parenthood patient service specialist is optimistic for her future.

"I'm going to rehab either later today or tomorrow, but they do think I'll have full recovery," she explained. "Nothing is certain, obviously."

Piché said she now has the most basic movements of her arms and legs but is hopeful of regaining her fine motor skills.

"So my legs, it's involuntary, have been kicking a lot lately. I can't control it," she noted. "My arms, they're—besides my hand dexterity—almost fully there. My fingers don't have full movement." 

(E! and NBC News are part of the NBCUniversal family.)

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