After more than five decades of touring the globe, Queen guitarist Brian May says he is in talks for a residency at the Las Vegas Sphere, a move that could reframe the band’s future onstage and reshape what a legacy rock act can do in the streaming age. How awesome would a Queen residency be in Vegas?
May told Rolling Stone he is “very keen on the Sphere,” saying the venue “got my mind working” after watching the Eagles perform there. He said he thought, “We should do this” and that “the stuff that we could bring to this would be stupendous.”
As of now no formal announcement has been made, but May’s comments signal serious conversations are underway. If Queen, in its current form with May, drummer Roger Taylor and vocalist Adam Lambert, does land a residency, it could be one of the most ambitious moves yet in the era of immersive concert venues.
The Sphere as a Stage for Legacy Acts
The MSG Sphere at The Venetian opened in 2023 and quickly became a destination for high-tech, visually immersive music residencies. U2 opened the venue with a 40-show run, and other acts including Phish, the Eagles and Dead & Company have followed.
The Sphere’s LED display and immersive sound systems allow artists to wrap audiences in visuals and spatial audio, creating shows that blend concert, cinema and multimedia spectacle.
May said watching the Eagles at the Sphere convinced him of the potential. He called their show “one of the best shows I’ve ever seen in my life” and praised the marriage of sound, music and visuals, Consequence of Sound notes.
If a Queen residency materializes, it would mark a turning point: rather than crisscrossing continents, the band might invite fans to come to them, anchoring a portion of their performance life in one place.
Band Dynamics and Creative Ambitions
May’s comments come amid growing signs that Queen is not winding down. Roger Taylor told Rolling Stone that he does not believe the band is done, rejecting the notion of a “final farewell tour,” notes NME.
May also revealed Queen has done some work in the studio with Lambert. He said “not many people know, but Adam and we have been in the studio trying things. Nothing really materialized so far. Some things are meant to be and some things are not.”
Regarding bassist John Deacon, who retired from public life decades ago, May said Deacon does not actively participate in day-to-day decisions but is consulted behind the scenes through management, notes Digital Music News.
Queen’s last major tour with Lambert, the Rhapsody Tour, concluded in Tokyo in 2024. Since then the band has largely been quiet on the live front, making a high-profile Sphere residency an intriguing pivot, NME reports.
Additionally, Queen has to manage legacy and identity. Their brand is deeply tied to Freddie Mercury, and any future shows must honor that history while giving space to new expression with Lambert as lead vocalist. May’s comment that not all studio experiments bloom reflects a cautious approach to preserving the brand’s strength. For aging artists in particular, doing a residency offers a way to perform without the strain of constant travel.
Looking Ahead
As of now no dates have been confirmed. But with May’s public interest and the groundwork in talks, a Queen residency at the Sphere seems a credible possibility.
If it comes to pass, Queen would join a short list of legacy acts embracing the new model of residency at immersive venues rather than traditional tours. For fans it could provide an opportunity to see the band in peak creative form, anchored in a fixed location with cutting edge visuals, sound and experience.
It could also set a precedent: aging rock icons using residencies in next-gen venues to stay vital without burning out on the road. In that light, May’s ambition to innovate isn’t nostalgia, it might be evolution.
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