Rose was spotted over the weekend in Atlanta, Georgia where the AC/DC was reportedly conducting auditions for Johnson’s temporary replacement.
A source told DJ Jason Bailey of Atlanta Radio 100.5 that Rose was indeed set to join the Australian hard rockers.
“This is what I’m being told, Axl was meeting with the AC/DC group, because it’s all but a done deal that Axl will front AC/DC for the 10 remaining shows. All 10, including Atlanta,” Bailey was quoted as saying by the Alternative Nation.
“From what I was told, this was all kind of new inside information to me, Angus (Young) is a very black and white guy. He’s like, Brian, for health reasons, can’t continue fronting the band. He was supposed to retire after the last tour, so they wanted to continue going out on the road and continue making music, so if you can’t do it, we appreciate your services, but the show must go on. They’re in town, they were auditioning people for the job, and then they flew Axl in, again, this is from my source,” he added.
The son of AC/DC co-founding guitarist Malcolm Young is also confirming the reports. Ross Malcom Young said on Facebook that the humors are “true” and that a decision has already been made for Rose to join the band. The post was, however, subsequently deleted.
But an AC/DC representative neither confirms nor denies the reports, only saying that: “Nothing official to announce. Will update you if that changes.”
Rose is currently preparing for a reunion tour with the classic Guns N’ Roses lineup that includes co-founding guitarists Slash and Duff McKagan, starting with a series of performances in Las Vegas.
The band is also scheduled to play in Mexico and at the famed Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California in late April.
Johnson is temporarily out from the AC/DC lineup after doctors advised him to immediately stop touring or risk total hearing loss, forcing the legendary band to reschedule its remaining U.S. tour dates and look for a temporary replacement.
Digital Journal earlier published a story about singers, including Rose, who could temporarily replace Johnson.
