The second Trump administration may spell trouble for national parks and California’s high-speed rail project. But for Green Day, it means open season.
While performing at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium on March 3, Green Day front man Billie Joe Armstrong changed the lyrics of “Jesus of Suburbia” to attack Vice President JD Vance.
“Oh therapy, can you please fill the void?” Armstrong can be seen singing in a fan video from the performance. “Am I retarded, or am I just JD Vance?” (The original lyric, which includes an offensive term, is “Am I retarded or am I just overjoyed?”)
As Consequence reported, Armstrong also changed the song’s lyrics to mention the war in Ukraine, swapping a reference to the California city of Anaheim for the country: “We are the kids of war and peace/From Ukraine to the Middle East.”
The pop punk outfit from San Francisco’s East Bay has never been shy about taking jabs at institutional figures, whether it’s President Donald Trump or the owner of Oakland’s A’s baseball team. The band’s 2004 album American Idiot may have been a reaction to the Bush presidency and the Iraq War, but front man Billie Joe Armstrong frequently swaps out lyrics to turn political criticisms on timelier targets.
At a surprise San Francisco show last year, Armstrong switched the lyrics of “Holiday” to take a swipe at Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. At a recent concert in Elon Musk’s home country of South Africa, he changed the opening lines of the track “American Idiot” to declare that “I’m not a part of the Elon agenda.”
The concert was part of the Australian leg of the band’s Saviors Tour, celebrating the 20th and 30th anniversaries of the albums American Idiot and Dookie, respectively. The band canceled its final Australian tour date as a tropical cyclone encroaches on the Australian coast.
In April, Green Day is slated to headline Coachella alongside Lady Gaga, Post Malone, and Travis Scott.
—Timothy Karoff, SFGate, San Francisco (TNS)
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