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Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler celebrates pop’s history of offending, before being offended by Cardi B’s WAP

By | Published on Wednesday 11 November 2020

Cardi B & Megan Thee Stallion

Contemporary music has a long history of pissing off older generations. In some ways it could be seen as its job, with each new generation of pop stars charged with the task of pissing off the people who, when younger, liked music partly because it was pissing off an earlier generation of older people.

Does that make sense? Well, let me give you an example: Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler, having previously made music that pissed people off, is now pissed off by new music himself. Specifically, he’s not a fan of Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s ‘WAP’, branding it “disgusting”.

The topic arose in a new interview with Kerrang! while discussing his 1997 solo track ‘Unspeakable Elvis’. “That’s really about the fact that whatever new music comes out, it’s viewed as the devil’s music”, he says. “I remember when Elvis came out everybody said he was Satan. And then in the 60s and 70s he became America’s national treasure”.

“It happens with every new wave of music”, he goes on. “Like metal, obviously. The christians were going mental when Sabbath came about. And then when rap came about, people were up in arms about that and certain words that rappers were using. I have to say, though, that Cardi B pisses me off with that ‘WAP’ song. It’s disgusting! But there you go”.

Like many, Butler isn’t keen on the sexually explicit lyrics in the track, even though it has been viewed by others as a female empowerment anthem.

“A friend of mine didn’t know what the song was about but his ten year old girl was singing it”, he says. “I was like ‘What?!’ To put it on album, fair enough. But to put it out as a single? That’s a bit much”.

“Then again”, he concedes, “I’m 71. A bloody old goat!”



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