Dan Reynolds revealed the band has “been late on stage because we’re playing League of Legends,” showing how deeply gaming is woven into their lives. This passion led to iconic collaborations like “Warriors” and “Enemy” with Riot Games for League of Legends and Arcane, plus memorable moments with Nintendo, including performing Zelda themes and featuring “Believer” in a Switch Super Bowl ad. Click here to dive into Imagine Dragons’ unique fusion of music and gaming culture.
“People probably think I’m not a gamer, but it’s my bread and butter. It’s our world,” said Reynolds in a new interview
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Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons performs in Leeds in August 2023
If an Imagine Dragons concert doesn’t start on time, it’s possibly because the band is caught up in a heated video game match.
The “Radioactive” band’s frontman Dan Reynolds opened up about his love for gaming in a new interview with The Washington Post, revealing the hobby has caused the group to delay its own shows.
“We’ve been late onstage because we’re playing League of Legends,” the singer-songwriter, 36, told the outlet of the multiplayer online battle game, which reserves the power to ban players who leave matches early.
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Imagine Dragons’ Dan Reynolds, Wayne Sermon and Ben McKee in Las Vegas in October 2023
Imagine Dragons has a history of collaborating with video game companies. Several of the band’s songs have been featured in commercials for gaming brands Ubisoft, Epic Games, Nintendo, Riot Games (the company behind League of Legends) and more.
The “Believer” group’s first time working with a gaming company was about a decade ago, when they performed as the backing instrumentalists for Nintendo composer Koji Kondo at the Game Awards in Las Vegas.
“I geeked out harder on that than when we played in front of [Paul] McCartney,” said Reynolds, who grew up listening to Kondo’s work for Super Mario World, in the Washington Post interview.
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Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons performs in Arizona in February 2023
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When it comes to working with major gaming brands, Imagine Dragons isn’t “going around knocking on doors” for opportunities, explained the lead vocalist: “They just started reaching out, and we said, ‘Absolutely, this is amazing.'”
“Look, I’m really tall, 6 foot 4, never played sports, always did music and drama, so people probably think I’m not a gamer, but it’s my bread and butter,” added Reynolds. “It’s our world.”
Imagine Dragons is currently gearing up to release a new album, Loom, on June 28. Elsewhere in the Washington Post interview, Reynolds opened up about the inspiration behind the band’s latest material.
“I grew up listening to singer-songwriters — Dylan, Billy Joel, Paul Simon, Cat Stevens. But I love pop music,” he said. “I like to create big choruses and songs that I want to hear, and I happen to be in a healthier, happier place with this record, so hopefully that’s reflected in it.”
