ZAKK WYLDE IS A MENSCH, BUT ALSO A HYPOCRITE

Here’s Zakk Wylde talking to Tartarean Desire a few years back… I’ve added some emphasis:

“What would be a good career move is to get Eminem to sing on a Black Label album. It would stir up some controversy with the Hell’s Angels of Iron if you had Eminem rapping on a Black Label album. I go first off I hate fucking rap music, so what the fuck would I want to have that mother fucker singing on my fucking album… Because he is popular?”

And here’s Zakk ranting about rap and rap metal back in 2006:

Of course, ideals are nothing in the face of a paycheck. And so here we are, it’s almost 2010, and Zakk Wylde has recorded a guest guitar solo on Public Enemy’s “Bring the Noise 20XX” for DJ Hero, a video game for people who think that Guitar Hero is too sophisticated.

Let me start with this assertion: I actually have no beef with old (good) hip-hop, or the basic concept of rap metal. Yes, bands like P.O.D. are fucking terrible, but Rage Against the Machine (and, to a lesser extent, Faith No More and probably some other groups I’m forgetting) have proven that the idea of mixing elements of metal and rap music does not have to be inherently awful.

But Zakk took a very public stance, and now he’s going against that stance, and so I feel an obligation to make fun of him.

I’m sure Zakk is justifying this decision by telling himself either that a) Anthrax once did the same song with Public Enemy so it’s all good or b) he lost his primary source of income this year and his kids aren’t gonna feed themselves and that’s that. But then he should make a statement saying “I got heating bills to pay” (which he’ll never do).

‘Cause anything else is just bullshit.

-AR