"THANK YOU for making my amazing kid's dream come true”: Green Day facilitate a mother and child reunion

Here’s a story sure to gladden the glummest of faces: Green Day managed to reunite a mother and son at one of their open-air shows over the weekend.

It happened on Sunday evening (September 21) when the band were headlining the final day of the Riot Fest at Chicago’s Douglass Park. Bobbi Cantrell had driven all the way from Indiana with her son, Argyle, to see Green Day – it was part of the young lad’s 16th birthday celebration. The pair arrived around noon to help ensure a spot near the front of the stage for the band’s set which was due to start around 8.15pm.

Young Argyle had even brought a sign along with a specific request for Billie Joe and co. It said: ‘Hi! It's my 16th birthday! I'm autistic and Green Day is my special interest. Can I come onstage and sing Know Your Enemy?’

As we know, eight hours is a long time to stand in the same place. At one point, mom needed the loo, leaving Argyle on his own at the front. But the arena had filled out with fans and Bobbi couldn’t find her way back to the front to return to her son.

"I was in panic mode all day because we got separated when I went to the bathroom and couldn't get back to him," Bobbi wrote later on Instagram.

Eventually, Green Day started their set, but Bobbi still hadn’t made it back to her son. Three songs into their set they started up Know Your Enemy. About halfway through the number, Billie Joe Armstrong came to the front of the stage.

"I have a really bad chest cold right now. I do. I'm a little bit sick right in here," Armstrong said as he tapped upon his chest. "So I need a volunteer. Who knows the lyrics to this song? Who knows it?"

And who should he pick out but Argyle! Billie Joe gave the lad a hug, handed over the mic and Argyle sang every word perfectly.

Of course, Bobbi then saw her son on the big screens and knew that he was ok.

"THANK YOU for making my amazing kid's dream come true and easing my anxiety," she wrote later in a comment on Armstrong’s Instagram. "As soon as I saw him onstage, I screamed, 'OMG THAT'S MY KID!!!!!' What an amazing night! I am a new fan forever."