In his latest social media rant on X (formerly Twitter), Elon Musk, the owner of the microblogging platform and CEO of Tesla, criticised Green Day following frontman Billie Joe Armstrong's anti-Trump comment during the "Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve" special on Sunday.
Armstrong altered the lyrics of the band's 2004 hit "American Idiot," replacing the line "I’m not a part of the redneck agenda" with "I’m not a part of a MAGA agenda."
Musk took to X on Monday, accusing Green Day of deviating from their original rebellious stance.
Musk's post read, "Green Day goes from raging against the machine to milquetoastedly raging for it," accompanied by laughing emojis.
For those unaware, the word 'milquetoastedly' is Musk's derivation of 'milquetoast', which means timid, feeble, insipid, or bland. Musk was actually responding to a post by @Not_the_Bee, who claimed that Green Day is still trying to "prove they're still cool by changing their lyrics to slam the 'MAGA agenda'."
The four-time Grammy-winning California-based pop-punk band, formed in 1987, has a history of openly criticising conservative politicians. In a 2016 interview with the Kerrang! magazine, Armstrong likened former President Trump to Adolf Hitler, expressing sympathy for Trump's followers and attributing their anger to economic struggles.
"He just said, 'You have no options, and I'm the only one, and I'm going to take care of it myself.' I mean, that's f------ Hitler, man!" Armstrong stated.
During a 2018 concert, Armstrong conveyed his strong dislike for Donald Trump, comparing it to his previous disdain for George Bush. He described the situation as "bad, it’s like acid gone bad. F---ing LSD and the American right, man."
As per Forbes, Green Day's recent adjustments to their lyrics, joining a growing list of artists who have modified their songs to align with contemporary perspectives. This move echoes Taylor Swift's noteworthy alteration during the summer, where she revised a lyric in "Better Than Revenge" that had faced criticism for its perceived misogyny and "slut-shaming" connotations. Additionally, Swift also amended a line in the 2008 track "Picture to Burn," addressing concerns of homophobia.
Elvis Costello took a similar stance in 2022, announcing his decision to refrain from performing the song "Oliver’s Army," a political anthem inspired by the Northern Ireland conflict. This decision came in light of a controversial line in the song that was deemed offensive. Lil Wayne made a commitment to the family of Emmett Till to remove the contentious lyric "Beat the p—— up like Emmett Till" from Future’s "Karate Chop" remix. Furthermore, the Black-Eyed Peas altered their hit single in 2004, changing "Let's Get Retarted" to "Let's Get It Started" to address concerns about the original title. This series of lyrical modifications highlights artists' responsiveness to societal sensitivities and their efforts to promote inclusivity in their creative expression.