Dee Snider always publicly defends what he believes in, without mincing words. After reacting angrily to anti-mask protests while listening to Twisted Sister and speaking out about gun laws in the United States, the singer shared his opinion on cancel culture.
To address the topic, Snider recalled when he testified against the censorship of music albums with content considered offensive in 1985. At the time, a parents' committee accused bands of obscenity in their music, and the case went to court.
“It’s censorship. And censorship has changed quite a bit. I mean, you think about when I was in Washington witnessing it. By the way, it was a bipartisan effort – it was the Democrats and Republicans who came together to put a leash on rock and roll. But it was definitely a conservative attitude – it was a more conservative attitude, wanting to censor music,” he declared to radio station WGN 720 (via Metal Sucks ) . “Now censorship still exists, but it’s shifted more from the right to the left. We’re in this virtual world where we have to be careful about what we say and who we offend, and that’s a very strange thing.”
Currently, Snider is working on his solo album Leave a Scar , scheduled for release in July of this year. Because of the strong reactions to the "cancellation" of artists, the artist considered changing some lyrics. "I started questioning the metaphors I was using – metaphors, what would art be without them, you know? Where are the lyrics and the writing without metaphors?", he continued. "Even so, I was thinking, 'Can I say this?' (...) and censoring myself because of the current state of affairs."
Alice Cooper also criticized political correctness and cancel culture in a recent interview. According to the musician, this type of thinking also threatens the existence of art.
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