Adam Levine addresses the fan who jumped onstage and grabbed him after the incident went viral on TikTok

• Adam Levine has explained his reaction to a fan who jumped onstage and grabbed him during a concert.

• The incident was captured on video and has been viewed on TikTok more than 9 million times.

• "I just need you guys to know I was really startled," he said in a video shared Tuesday.

Adam Levine has set the record straight after a fan jumped onstage and grabbed the singer's arm.

The incident occurred at the Hollywood Bowl on Saturday, where Maroon 5 performed for Audacy's eighth annual "We Can Survive" charity concert. The brief interaction was captured by another concertgoer, who shared a video on TikTok.

The clip shows Levine was singing "Sunday Morning" with his eyes closed as the fan rushed toward him. He was visibly unnerved when she touched him, and as security removed her from the stage he shivered and mouthed the word "fuck" to the audience.

The subtitle on TikTok says "Adam Levine was not having it," with a skull emoji. It has since been viewed on the app more than 9 million times.

Levine explained his reaction Tuesday with a series of videos shared on his Instagram story.

"I have always been someone that loves, respects, worships our fans. Without our fans, we don't have a job. I say that all the time to our fans," he began. "To think that anyone would believe that I thought that our fans were 'beneath us' or 'less than us' makes my stomach turn. That's just not who I am. That's not who I've ever been."

"So I just need you guys to know I was really startled," he continued. "And sometimes when you're startled, you have to shake it off and move on cause I'm doing my job up there. It's what I pride myself on."

Levine seemed to be addressing some of the disapproving comments on TikTok. One person wrote that Levine "needs to sit down and be humble for a sec," a comment that garnered nearly 120,000 likes. Another person wrote he "looked like a 5 year old kid throwing a tantrum."

Some critics on Twitter also opined that Levine was "disgusted after being touched by a poor person" and needed to "lay off the attitude."

Others defended Levine's reaction, however, and described an apparent double standard. "If a male fan was that aggressive with a female celebrity this comment section would look way different," one person wrote. "She's not entitled to touch him or anyone."

"He doesn't even have to be humbled," said a comment with more than 144,000 likes. "A random person invaded his personal space during a pandemic he acted the right way."

Levine concluded his video by telling fans that his "heart" was in "the connection that exists" between the band and its fans.

"I hope that we can all understand that," he added.

Read the original article on Insider