Red Hot Chili Peppers members send out angry emails

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea has written an email to the band's fans revealing that someone has been impersonating him on a MySpace page and sending out "racist and insulting and disgusting" messages using his identity. The bassist, whose real name is Michael Balzary, wrote in part, "I do not want to give the name of this idiot's website and grant him an iota of dignity that he/she does not deserve...I (feel) terrible that someone would send out racist messages, period, and even worse that it is done in my name...please know that I am doing what it takes to get him to stop carrying on in this way."

Meanwhile, Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante sent out a lengthy email of his own, berating fans at a recent Chili Peppers show in Oklahoma who booed the band's opening act -- and Frusciate's friend -- rapper Mickey Avalon. Frusciante wrote, "In booing another man, in the first place, you show no regard for humanity. And you show that you have no concept of the amount of courage it takes to open up in front of anybody, much less 10,000 people."

The guitarist concluded his very long letter by nevertheless thanking everyone who came to the show, "including you who booed."

Some fans suggested online that the audience was booing because they expected to see Gnarls Barkley, the Chili Peppers' opening act on most of their last U.S. tour.

The Chili Peppers' next U.S. show will be at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival on April 28th in Indio, California.