Slipknot’s Corey Taylor likes Ed Sheeran but says Justin Bieber ‘can kiss my ass’

Taylor says Sheeran 'worked his ass off' for his success

Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor has spoken about the state of the music industry, praising Ed Sheeran but criticising Justin Bieber for his supposed appropriation of metal culture.

The rock frontman recently published a book called America 51. It sees him discuss the current political climate in the United States.

Speaking to The Guardian in a new interview following the book’s release, Taylor bemoaned how a lot of bands are splitting up because they “can’t make a living” out of music. He said: “The industry is trying to make peace with streaming, they’re finding out how to monetise it, but they’re still screwing over the artists.”

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“I’m in a unique situation because I’m in the old system, but I’m actually able to make a pretty decent living with the new system,” Taylor continued. “I find it hard to bite the hand that feeds me. But at the same time I see all these other bands who can’t get a break. I don’t know what the answer is to be honest.”

“I’m stoked for people like Ed Sheeran – that kid worked his ass off, so why shouldn’t he get the recognition? But at the same time when his songs dominated [the charts] because of streaming, where is the fairness? What about the other artists who worked their asses off, but maybe didn’t have a million streams?”

Slipknot's Corey Taylor
Slipknot’s Corey Taylor

Taylor went on to criticise the appropriation of metal culture within the mainstream and fashion worlds, as well as metal’s flirting with fascist iconography.

“You’re seeing grandmas in Slipknot shirts,” Taylor said. “It’s really weird. It makes it easier for me to blend in, which I am completely happy to do; you get tired of the stares after a while.”

“But punk and metallers take ‘fascist’ imagery like shaved heads and black clothing and divorce it from racism and nationalism, to make a statement about disaffection; you’re now seeing people like Richard Spencer who are not only appropriating the imagery of nationalism, but also the rhetoric. The anger, the racism of it. It worries me.”

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“Oh, but Justin Bieber’s line in pseudo-metal T-shirts? He can kiss my ass,” Taylor added.

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The Stone Sour singer also criticised modern rap music, saying: “I hate most new hip-hop. It’s all the same mush-mouthed bullshit, and it doesn’t say anything except ‘I want to get fucked and drink champagne’. It’s pathetic. The hip-hop I grew up with had a message. There’s a reason Chuck D is my hero, let me put it that way.”

Taylor also recently spoke about Trump’s Presidency, saying: “It’s really fucking unfortunate how bad we have just fucked ourselves… I’m like, ‘Ugh, you petty, petulant c**t. Would you just fucking get impeached already?’”

“It is embarrassing that he is the ‘leader of the free world,’” Taylor continued. “I will never give him the qualification for that shit. He can’t go away fast enough. And I think people are really starting to see that. His approval rating is at 39 percent in a lot of places. Was there a reason you wiped your ass with your fucking vote, you bunch of dickheads? Good for you.”

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