‘We Never Got Asked Again’: Kaiser Chiefs Once Said No to The Rolling Stones

Even rockstars have regrets. For Kaiser Chiefs’ Simon Rix, his was saying no to supporting one of the world’s most infamous rock bands.

In a new interview with Rolling Stone AU/NZ, the founding bass player looked back 20 years to 2005, where Kaiser Chiefs were so jam-packed with gigs thanks to the success of their album Employment, which charted “much higher than we ever expected.”

Employment peaked at No. 2 on the UK albums chart, and achieved Platinum certification seven times. It featured four singles, three of which peaked within the UK top ten. Two of the singles, “I Predict a Riot” and “Every Day I Love You Less and Less” also charted in Australia.

“We knew it was going well in 2005,” Rix said. The indie rock band were touring America and Europe, playing massive headlining shows, and gracing the main stages at Glastonbury and Scotland’s T in the Park.

“They were the moments where you were like, ‘Ah, right, okay. This is big, bigger than us.’ This is like, what we dreamed. You want that to happen, you want the band to be successful and everybody to know the songs. I guess that was the manifesto. But when it happened, it was still a surprise.”

He recalled being “so busy in 2005,” because whenever something came along, the band would say yes. But this meant they “were crazily busy.”

So much so, their hectic schedule meant turning down an opening slot for The Rolling Stones. “We got a spot to support the [Rolling] Stones in, like, Austria somewhere. We were just so busy that we said ‘no,’ and we were like, ‘Oh, we have to do it another time,’” he said.

“We never got asked again.”

Kaiser Chiefs are heading to Australia next month, celebrating Employment‘s 20th anniversary with shows in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane.

Kaiser Chiefs 2025 Australia Tour

Ticket information available via secretsounds.com

Sunday, November 23rd

RAC Arena, Perth WA

Tuesday, November 25th

Festival Hall, Melbourne VIC

Thursday, November 27th

Hordern Pavilion, Sydney NSW

Friday, November 28th

Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane QLD