The Top 10 Most Outrageous Quotes From Musicians

Yesterday marked an anniversary of one of the most outrageous quotes of all time. You remember, when John Lennon stated that the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus.”  With that being said, we started thinking about some other outrageous quotes that have come from the mouths of musicians over the years. Here are the top 10 most outrageous quotes from musicians. Enjoy!

1. John Lennon says “Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn’t argue about that. I’m right and I’ll be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now. I don’t know which will go first: rock & roll or Christianity. Jesus was all right, but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It’s them twisting it that ruins it for me.”

The quote didn’t really cause too much trouble for Lennon or the Beatles right away. However, when an American teen magazine picked up the quote and ran with it all came crashing down around Lennon. For lack of a better term, all hell broke loose. It was so bad that even U.S. disc jockeys were holding bonfires for Beatles records.

His Apology: “I apologize if that will make you happy. I still don’t know quite what I’ve done… but if you want me to apologize, if that will make you happy, then okay, I’m sorry.”

 

2. Natalie Maines says: “Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the president of the United States is from Texas.”

The quote didn’t cause much of a stir where Maines stated it (in England at a show), but when the quote got back to the U.S. there was an immediate firestorm coming down around Maines and the Dixie Chicks. Nearly every country radio station in the U.S. dropped their single, “Travelin’ Soldier,” which stood at No. 1 at the time. The Chicks have rarely been heard on the format in the decade since, although their next album swept the Grammys without benefit of radio play.

 

3. Kanye West says: “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.”

Want to see an awkward silence and look from someone? Look at the face of Mike Myers and then the face of Chris Tucker after Kanye finishes his rant and states that “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.” Of course at the time this was hard to watch, but now it seems funny. However, West would continue to carry his antics on for years to come, as we all know.

4. Ted Nugent says: “If Barack Obama becomes the president in November, again, I will either be dead or in jail by this time next year. Why are you laughing? Do you think that’s funny? That’s not funny at all. I’m serious as a heart attack.”

We all understand that Ted Nugent has always been one to speak his mind. However, after the statements he made at an NRA convention just prior to the 2012 election all but guaranteed him a place in history, as well as a visit from the Secret Service. Before he was cut off he also added “We need to ride into that battlefield and chop their heads off in November!,”

5. Nathan Followill of Kings of Leon says: “Dear Ryan Murphy, let it go. See a therapist, get a manicure, buy a new bra. Zip your lip and focus on educating 7-year-olds how to say f—.”

Not that we should defend anything he said, but in Followill’s defense, Ryan Murphy did start this whole thing because Kings of Leon refused to let him use a song on the hit show “Glee.” That being said, it was a Twitter war that simply got out of hand and Followill did issue an apology shortly after.

His Apology: “I’m sorry 4 anyone that misconstrued my comments as homophobic or misogynistic,” wrote Followill. “I’m so not that kind of person. I really do apologize.”

 

6. Cat Stevens says: “He must be killed. The Qur’an makes it clear: if someone defames the prophet, then he must die.”

The quote was all about blasphemy and related to a lot of things Cat Stevens was going through or had gone through. Still though, it came out very poorly and was a national story. Stevens tried to make sure everyone knew he was misunderstood in his quote, but it didn’t really stick. He did post the following apology/statement on his website:

His Apology/Statement: “When asked about my opinion regarding blasphemy, I could not tell a lie and confirmed that — like both the Torah and the Gospel — the Qur’an considers it, without repentance, as a capital offense… However, the application of such Biblical and Qur’anic injunctions is not to be outside of due process of law…”

7. Jerry Lee Lewis says: “I can assure that my wife is all woman, even though she looks kinda young.”

Jerry Lee Lewis was actually one of the most popular musicians at the time and his career did recover after this. However, after being caught at an airport with a bride that looked a little wet behind the ears Lewis was asked how old she was. Lying, Lewis stated she was 15, which added two years onto her real age, which was 13. Not only that, but the girl was his cousin. His name has been dogged with cousin jokes ever since.

8. Michelle Shocked says: “If someone would be so gracious as to please tweet out, ‘Michelle Shocked just said from stage, God hates faggots,” would you do it now?

Michelle Shocked seems a little disjointed. That fact was further driven home when she went into the above rant onstage at Yoshi’s in San Francisco this past March. This led much of the audience to walk out and the club to finally pull the plug. She did issue an apology, but her other antics have since clouded that apology.

Her Apology: “When I said ‘Twitter that Michelle Shocked says ‘God hates faggots,” I was predicting the absurd way my description of, my apology for, the intolerant would no doubt be misinterpreted.” Audio released of this was contrary to what her apology says.

9. Public Enemy’s Professor Griff says: “Jews are responsible for the majority of the wickedness that goes on across the globe.”

Ahhh, if this doesn’t take us back to Nazi Germany than nothing ever will. The following excerpt is from a Yahoo music article written by Chris William:

Flavor Flav may have worn a clock around his neck, but Griff was the millstone around the neck of the hip-hop collective. When It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back was coming out to great acclaim in 1988, their Black Muslim Minister of Information” did a series of interviews spreading information like “There’s no place for gays” and “If the Palestinians took up arms, went into Israel and killed all the Jews, it’d be all right.” Asked about Griff’s incendiary statements, Chuck D tried to strike a balance between distancing the rest of the group and not throwing his compatriot under the bus, saying, “I back Griff.” Eventually the disassociation became more clear, but much damage was already done. No apology was ever issued.

10. Johnny Rotten says: “F—in’ good riddance to bad rubbish. I don’t give a f—in’ s—, and nobody else does either. It’s just fun to fake sympathy, that’s all they’re doin’.”

This was the singer’s reaction (singer for Sex Pistols) when he was asked about the death of Elvis Presley. It was a shocker at the time, but now it seems mute considering all the hate that has come out of his mouth.