Singer and LGBTQ icon Elton John lashed out verbally at security guards from the stage of his concert in Perth, Australia on Sunday night, hurling expletives at them over their treatment of a woman in the audience.

The Grammy, Oscar, Tony, and Golden Globe winner was in the middle of a performance at HBF Park Stadium when he exploded into a tirade full of four-letter words after spotting two concert security staffers attempting to remove the female fan from the stadium.

In footage from the concert that has been widely posted on Twitter, the 72-year-old John can be heard saying:

“Hey, you two security guards with the girls, fuck off. Bring her back here immediately… Come on you c–nts. Morons, you both are, morons. You don’t treat girls like that. Leave her alone, you turds.”

The audience in the stadium responded with cheers and laughter. Later, the singer apologized to the crowd, saying:

“I apologize for the ‘c-word’, I just hate people being assaulted, especially women by security guards. I have a pet hate of security guards anyway.”

Fans on social media later posted mixed reactions to the pop star’s outburst, with some expressing disappointment that a professional of John’s stature would launch such a foul-mouthed attack while others felt the singer was responding appropriately to the situation, such as @FreoLou, who tweeted, “We were not shocked at all. We all applauded Elton calling out overly aggressive behaviour by two men towards a female.”

Speaking the next day with the Sydney Morning Herald, Perth television presenter Louise Momber, who had been in the audience, commented:

“He was so angry. He said he can’t stand violence against women and had to say something. He sang the next song and then immediately apologized for his rant – but said it’s something he’s really passionate about.”

In a statement to Billboard, a spokesman for the venue said, “the security team acted appropriately and we worked together with Elton’s team to ensure that the event was safe and successful for the artist and the patrons.”