The announcement

Berlin rapper Ski Aggu has announced a phone ban for concerts on his upcoming tour, he told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa). The artist, whose legal name is August Jean Diederich and who always performs wearing ski goggles, counts himself among the phone-addicted. He argues that audiences need a place to switch off, both themselves and their devices. In his view the ban would keep fans more in the moment and help them store memories in their heads.

“As a phone-addicted person myself, I say we have to force ourselves to find our happiness by banning phones at the concert.”

The tour

The ban was part of the tour announcement. Ski Aggu released his album "Ski Aggu Musik" in mid-October 2026 and will tour with it in 2027. The Insider Tour is aimed at what he calls "his most loyal fans" and begins in Rostock. Shows are planned for February and March in ten cities across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The artist is known for reaching a large audience on social media, where several of his videos have gone viral.

Trust rather than enforcement

In principle he has nothing against phones in the crowd, and he says he likes filming moments himself when he is at a show. The problem, in his account, is that collective phone use has grown so much that people long for a phone-free place, as in many nightclubs. He plans to implement the ban on a basis of trust, and he expects the audience to comply.

“I think the audience will stick to it and respect the rule.”

Other artists with phone bans

Smartphones are already banned at other artists' shows. Fans of US singer Bob Dylan must do without photos at concerts, according to the report. US singer Phoebe Bridgers has also banned phones at her shows. A joint tour by rapper RIN and singer Schmyt was titled "No Phones Allowed". Ski Aggu's plan places him in a small but growing group of performers who want concerts to be free of screens.