Can’t be too careful these days. There’s a lot of money in music memorabilia and celebrity autographs. Look on eBay and you’ll see hundreds of thousands of autographs for sale, some going for big money and others…not. Of course most of those listings aren’t from fans who are parting with their personal collection: They’re from professionals who make a living off of getting autographs from celebrities and then using those to profit off that celebrity’s own fans. And look, I’m all for making a buck, and props to them for hustling to get the autographs and selling them, but it just seems a little scummy to me to use an artist’s kindness to get an autograph (for free) and then turn around and take advantage of that artist’s fans like that. Apparently John Rich feels that way too. An autograph seeker posted a video of the Big & Rich singer turning down his request outside of the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, apparently thinking the guy was planning on selling it on eBay: “No, I don’t sign guitars you’re going to sell on eBay.” The guy tried to appeal to John, telling him he was a “patriot” like him, but Rich was unmoved: “It’s going on eBay… I know what eBay.com is and I see it on there all the time.” Apparently John was suspicious of the guy holding a cheap guitar that was still in the packaging, though he insisted that he was a fan. But the singer insisted that he only signs expensive guitars: “I only sign Gibsons… Bring me a Gibson or a Martin and I’ll sign it. I ain’t signing s— guitars.” Rich was pretty nice to the guy despite refusing to sign his guitar, even assuring him that he’d still be able to make some money without his signature: “You’ll get some other stars on it, you’ll be able to make some money on it.” Unfortunately for the guy, John held true to his word and eventually departed without signing the guitar – though his Big & Rich partner Big Kenny did indulge him and autograph it for him. @00judah I LITERALLY LOVE BIG KENNY @Big & Rich HE WAS VERY NICE AND NORMAL, I LIKE #johnrich TOO BUT HE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF AN EGO #bigandrich #bigkenny ♬ original sound – Judah Now, the guy insisted in the comments of the video that he really wasn’t trying to sell the guitar. But as many times as artists are asked for autographs only to see them end up for sale, you can’t blame them for being careful these days. And unfortunately, that means making snap judgments about whether somebody’s a real fan or simply somebody trying to make a buck. Luckily if you’re in the market for a John Rich-signed guitar…surprise, surprise, there are some available on eBay right now, with the cheapest one currently listed for $170. (It’s not a Gibson or a Martin, so that must be a fairly recent policy that Rich has implemented. Or maybe he just smelled bulls— and came up with that one on the fly). Oh well, better luck next time I guess.The post “I Only Sign Gibsons” – John Rich Turns Away Autograph Seeker After Suspecting He Was Trying To Sell It On eBay first appeared on Whiskey Riff.