Welcome again to Making Noise, your weekly look at hot topics, buzzy tidbits and music news that’s raising the volume and going viral on social media and in music lover circles.
As the midterm elections near, it seems everyday brings a new musicmaker to cancel or clap for depending on where you stand. The (world) stage is getting crowded, too. Artists like Jack White and Hayley Williams are using their platforms on social media and onstage to speak out, but others seem just as interested in throwing shade at them. Metallica’s James Hetfield, is the latest to join the conversation by insisting he’s not in it, after announcing at a recent Sphere show that “Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bullshit.”
The band’s early anti-authoritarian lyrics and themes—which they still perform—beg to differ and former fans have been calling out the disconnect. Following the backlash Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters got into the ring, stating on a podcast this week: “I’m so bored with him. He’s just showing that he’s a complete prick. He’s got an IQ of about three, and why we’re talking about him I honestly don’t know, because he’s a nobody.”
Round and Round
Of course, it’s not surprising coming from Waters who made speaking politically part of his shows, but now another rocker is getting joining the chat, seemingly taking Hetfield’s side. In a new just-turned-viral clip online, Nikki Sixx is seen saying, “It does not matter to Mötley Crüe if you’re a Republican. It does not matter to Mötley Crüe if you’re a Democrat. It doesn't matter if you’re gay or if you’re straight or if you’re going right down the fucking centre of the lane of life cause we’re all in this together. Can we agree?" A lot better than Hetfield’s “bullshit” statement but it still begs the question: if the stance is that politics should stay out of music, why bring them up at all?
Getting political in music or on stage is a choice, and ya gotta respect artists who do, even at the expense of maybe losing fans. They have a right not to as well, and fans who feel cheated by that can choose not to support. Artists calling each other out is the icky new part of this story, though of course, beefing over personal matters has been a thing since the beginning.
Fight the Pollsters
Power to the People Fest, held in Maryland last week saw Foo Fighters, Jack Black (“Jack Sabbath”), Bruce Springsteen and Soundgarden with The Pretty Reckless’ Taylor Momsen and Cypress Hill to name a few, perform a livestreamed show to promote “Peace, Love, Justice and Music” bringing everyone together, well sort of. Organizer Tom Morello’s admission that he didn’t vote for Kamala Harris kinda hung over it like a sad cloud. Smugly bragging to Rolling Stone about the last election led many to assume he didn’t vote at all, but he clarified later that he did, just not for the Democrat. Of course, the liberal rocker didn’t vote for Trump, well technically, but as the internet reminded him, third party voting essentially helps out the GOP by splitting the left. One day this might change but right now, it’s—as Metallica sang— “sad but true.” In any case you can watch some great clips from the festival on YouTube.
For the Birds
In more important social discourse news, lol, Kelly Clarkson is once again taking over our feeds, this time not over her love of AI, but over a weird mechanical bird. It all started with a snarky social media post about an encounter she described as “Pretty Woman” treatment from a Brooklyn shop called Art of Play. After the shop denied her wishes to purchase a wall-mounted singing bird, stating it was not for sale, she brought recipes showing a $15,000 pricetag. The back and forth on socials over what actually happened has been non-stop with the store’s latest statements seriously claiming that “Kelly Clarkson has put us in danger!” We thought the store’s initial response was funny yet fan-y as it incorporated the singer’s own lyrics in a playful way, but now it’s gone off the rails a bit, with multiple interviews and an advertised new price for the bird: 15 million! Here’s hoping the two parties stop pecking at each other because clearly there are more important things to argue about.
This Isn’t It
Could all the discourse in the world be driving some artists a bit mad? Giant Drag's Annie Hardy played a bizarre joke last week after posting an obit for herself on her Instagram, Facebook, and Threads. It read "RIP Annie Hardy" and "June 5, 1981 - Oct 3, 2026" with a photo of the singer and the statement: "It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Annie -Summer Hardy. A caring friend to many, a friend to the Animals and a follower of Jesus Christ. Please respect the families wish for privacy during this difficult time. Services to be announced in the days to come Rest in Peace, Annie. The world will never be the same." But it was all fake. Hardy, known to be a prankster, made the post herself and had planned to keep it going until a friend went to check on her and said it wasn’t true. Why did she do it? Hardy and Giant Drag (a band we truly loved during the "indie sleaze era" of the alt music, as the early aughts are now lamely dubbed) had a show at the Redwood Bar in DTLA this week, but promo apparently wasn’t it. Here’s some of what she shared with Stereogum about the odd ruse:
“Pranks are insensitive, and there is nothing funny about someone passing away. A "hoax" feels like a more accurate description. A hoax shatters what was previously believed to be true, forcing a shift in perspective. In that moment, as old assumptions and emotions dissolve, you are given the opportunity to decide how to view reality moving forward. One profound aspect of loss is how the living often let go of past grievances, choosing instead to remember the deceased in a purely positive light. Their hearts open fully, knowing they won't see that person again... Also I wanted to point out how everything in these phones now is fake. The only real thing we have left in life is our love for one another but here we are letting alleged loved ones evaporate in a mist in the background.”
Making Noise: Sound Bites
Taylor Swift will be in L.A. this weekend to perform at the Academy Museum Gala, the bougie celeb event that floods our feeds with glitzy red carpet fashion akin to the Oscars each year. If you’re in L.A., avoid the area as Swifties will surely be swifting about and traffic will be terrible, regardless. Where will Tay and Trav eat and hang out while in L.A.? The gossip rags and paps will surely let us know, mostly against our will.
Celebrating his 80th birthday, the David Bowie's estate just announced BOWIE 80, a month long celebration on 2027 featuring an array of events, merch releases and more. Sign up for info here.
Ozzy & Black Sabbath: Back to the Beginning, a condensed film version of the live-streamed event in Birmingham, UK that took place just before the Ozzy Osbourne's death, put together by musical director Morello, will be in theaters at the end of the month, but MC was in the house for the Osbourne family's special premiere event this week. Our full report is on the way, but snag your advance tickets now here.
