Recently, I took my son to see the Smashing Pumpkins. It was a great concert, and I do not regret for a minute having taken my son to see them.
It got me in the mood to do a bit of research on the Pumpkins, and especially famous frontman Billy Corgan. There were some strange stories that I had found.
Now, to be sure, I had been aware that Corgan had some strange attitudes and public statements before. He has consistently dismissive of certain other bands, particularly those with a higher profile than his own band, namely the Food Fighters and Pearl Jam. Indeed, Billy Corgan expressed some dismissive sentiments about two bands that I really like - the Foo Fighters and Pearl Jam.
Corgan is undeniably a great musician, and the music that he created with the Smashing Pumpkins, and to a lesser degree Zwan, stands out as truly great.
However, he seems unable to let some of his personal antagonism go. And while he once suggested that he and Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain were the only two guys who were really innovative and moved music in new directions in the nineties, he also has something else in common with Cobain: a very public jealousy of other, bigger bands, as well as a denial that this bitterness is, in fact, jealousy. But since he continually brings it up, it seems pretty clear to many people that this is exactly what it is.
Also, when you get the chance to see him talk a bit more at length like this, he really is an intelligent, well-spoken guy. However, that does not mean that he is not privy to some very strange, and frankly, very surprising views.
Hell, some people might even be shocked. Who knew that Corgan would be a supporter of President Trump?
It is kind of creepy, in some respects. He seemed like a rebel with a clue during his heyday of the nineties. Indeed, he was one of the most creative and unique creative minds out there, even if he makes such a point of trying to detract from other bands. There is no denying his talent, and his unique musical gifts, as well as usually insightful lyrics.
But the pettiness of his beef against other musicians, now spanning decades (which perhaps speaks volumes in itself), coupled with his apparent acceptance of, and even admiration for, Trump, seems to cast Corgan (or at least this older, wealthier version of Corgan) in an entirely different light.
I do not mean to fixate on political differences myself, but let's face it: supporting Trump with enthusiasm is kind of a turn off. This is a guy who kicked off his campaign by promoting and entrenching negative stereotypes of Mexicans, who advocated a national registry for people belonging to and believing in a certain faith, and who once suggested that there were some very good people among the neo-Nazis and white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville a year ago. This is a man who threatened to wipe another nation off the map before the United Nations right around International Peace Day, and who seemed to threaten another nation recently in yet one more of his trademark, idiotic, mind-numbingly stupid and petty tweets. Trump is a man who claims a monopoly on the truth, who tells his supporters that any criticisms of him should automatically be qualified as "fake news," and who not only denies science and is a poster child for climate change denial, but who has outright censored any mention of climate change, or anything associated with it or the science behind it, within certain government agencies. This is a man who has admitted that he would most likely never admit to being wrong, and who actually went ahead and called himself a "very stable genius" on more than one occasion.
Let's face it: supporting Trump is not exactly a ringing endorsement or an an impressive addition to credit Corgan's intellectual prowess or thoughtfulness, quite frankly.
In fact, let's go a bit farther: it downright compromises his seeming intelligence, objectivity and, frankly, his maturity. Usually, creative musicians, and artists in general, put a little more thought into things than that. But then again, Corgan, like Trump, has aired his dirty laundry regarding his personal thoughts and, yes, his jealousy, which is kind of in the mold of countless Trump tweets over the years.
At least Corgan does not think so highly of himself that he believes that he should be in the White House himself, though.
Does he?
I don't know. But I do know that he has a very high opinion of himself and his genius, which is not unlike Trump, and we have already established that Corgan is a fan of Herr Trump. Also, Corgan seems to find a way to get on the nerves of many people, and seems to make a point of it. He had problems with Kurt Cobain, although now, he uses Cobain to suggest that he and Cobain were the only real musical geniuses who helped define music in the nineties. He has a problem with Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters, although again, I suspect that the problem that he has with them is that their bands are more popular, and has enjoyed a sustained popularity for a much longer duration than his own band(s) have (remember, Corgan was the headman for both the Smashing Pumpkins. He has a problem with plenty of other musicians, including Courtney Love of Hole, and even members of his own band.
And, he has some very strange views on politics, which admittedly, surprised me. I had heard about his qualms with other musicians, and dismissed them as an ego kind of thing. But voicing his political ignorance, and apparently enthusiastically going on the Info Wars show and blasting detractors of Trump.
Listen, I still like the Smashing Pumpkins, and what Billy Corgan has done musically. Most likely, I will still listen to the Smashing Pumpkins, and I am still glad that I took my son to see them earlier this year (and Courtney Love was at that concert). But that said, this serves as a reminder not to necessarily assume that even brilliant musicians and other artists are necessarily enlightened in any other way, even if they happen to have incredible talent and seem very innovative in their field. Finding out how egotistical Corgan is, and how backwards his political views apparently lean, is a sobering reminder of that grim fact.
So, in any case, here are some of the links revealing Corgan's political views:
Billy Corgan Blasts Faceless Posers And Plastic Pop Stars In ‘Playback’ Interview by Ben Smith (@BHSmithNYC) Feb 25, 2015:
Billy Corgan Shares Song List for Smashing Pumpkins Reunion Tour by Sam Sodomsky Associate Staff Writer, February 23, 2018:
https://pitchfork.com/news/billy-corgan-shares-song-list-for-smashing-pumpkins-reunion-tour/
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