Sex Pistols icon Johnny Rotten hits out at “turgid” Green Day

"They're coat hangers, you know."

Sex Pistols icon John Lydon has hit out at Green Day, claiming that the seminal band are “embarrassing” in keeping the spirit of punk alive.

Speaking to the New York Times, Lydon discussed the state of punk in 2018 – some 40 years after the Sex Pistols headed out on a notorious US tour.

“It is embarrassing really”, he explained.

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“How many bands are out there like Green Day now? I look at them and I have to laugh. They’re coat hangers, you know. A turgid version of something that doesn’t actually belong to them.”

johnny rotten
Johnny Rotten

Instead, he now believes punk has become defined by a “caricature”, while rap is “a perfect backdrop to sell a pair of sneakers”.

Despite previously describing Donald Trump’s election as “magnificent”, Lydon also admitted that he in fact voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016.

“What America did was it voted in a businessman to replace politicians,” he said.

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“Is business the alternative? I’ve openly said I don’t think so. That’s the ultimate corruption, but that’s how desperate America has become.”

Meanwhile, it was recently revealed that Lydon has made an unlikely foray into animated TV – voicing a Gordon Ramsey esque celebrity chef in a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon. 

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