Eighties Hairband music was far from ever being political. The only two songs I remember having a political slant was Winds of Change by the Scorpions (a German band that sang about the fall of the Berlin Wall) and Little Fighter by White Lion (which doesn’t count because it’s not really memorable). Hairband music was all about sex, drugs and rock n roll. Guns N Roses took that to an extreme, writing songs like Mr. Brownstone, It’s So Easy, Anything Goes and Welcome To The Jungle.
After a decade of being out of the limelight, Front Man Axl Rose has been rebuilding his resume. He filled in for Brian Johnston as the lead singer for AC/DC in 2016 and then started touring with core members of Guns N Roses again in 2016 and 2017.
But as of lately, Axl can add Political Activist to his resume. Check out his latest tweet:
Nunes isn’t an ex-band mate who fell out of favor or a music executive that’s screwing Axl out of a deal. He’s Congressman Nunes (R-California) and Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Nunes wrote a memo alleging FBI missteps during the 2016 election. Critics claim that Nunes is attempting to discredit special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the Trump campaign and now in a political play he’s pushing for its public release. [Read about details here.]
Apparently, Axl is one of those critics.
A look at Axl’s tweet history shows this isn’t his only foray into political waters. While most bands and performers tweet thanks to their fans, since March of last year Axl has been busy commenting on the President and his staff’s actions (especially Attorney General Sessions).
Axl has always been a Front Man that speaks his mind, but I never thought he’d be the voice of reason in a political debate with our government. Here’s hoping that President Trump engages at some point for a Twitter Battle. My money is on Axl.
And if we're calling for Oprah to run in 2020, can we get Axl on the ticket? If not as Vice-President, then how about Secretary of Defense?
Related: Read Wal Ozello's review of Axl Rose as the best vocalist ever.
Wal Ozello is a science fiction techno-thriller novelist and the author of Assignment 1989 , Revolution 1990, and Sacrifice 2086. He's the lead singer of the former Columbus rock band Armada and a frequent customer at Colin's Coffee.