Ted Nugent has once again made waves online after releasing a new video in which he sharply criticizes several major rock artists, mixing praise for their musical abilities with harsh condemnation of their political views.
The comments appear in a clip uploaded to Nugent’s official YouTube channel on January 1, part of his recurring The Spirit Campfire series. The episode, titled “Talk Music With Uncle Ted,” finds Nugent reflecting on artists he feels have made an impact musically, while simultaneously accusing some of them of betraying what he believes America stands for.
Throughout the video, Nugent names multiple Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame–inducted artists, including Jack White, Green Day, Eminem, and Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello. While Nugent acknowledges that many of these musicians are talented performers, he repeatedly frames his criticism around their political positions rather than their creative output.
Discussing Jack White and Eminem — both of whom appeared during a recent Detroit Lions Thanksgiving halftime show — Nugent said (as transcribed by ThePRP): “The guy in The White Stripes, I can’t think of his name, but he played the halftime show with Eminem for the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. A big deal. …Don’t they always lose? The Lions are a football team in Detroit, by the way…
Jack White, is that his name? Jack White. No, I think The White Stripes, is that his name? Anyhow, he was great. It wasn’t like a 10 like Sammy Hagar or James Brown. I think Sammy Hagar and James Brown and Steven Tyler, those are tens. Angus Young of AC/DC, that’s a 10. The guy’s a maniac. Billy Gibbons in the blues, rhythm, and blues, soul music category, he’s a 10.
Now, is that his name, Jack White? Jack White, he’s not a 10. He’s like a four and a five, but he really delivered real rock and roll. Real Detroit piss and vinegar. And Eminem, the guy’s a… Both of those guys, Eminem and Jack White: total idiots.
Nugent then shifted his focus squarely to politics, accusing the artists of holding views he strongly opposes: “They don’t want their country to have secure borders. They think men should destroy women’s sports. Well, that’s not… that’s exactly what they stand for. When you hate Donald Trump, you you want men in women’s sports to destroy women’s rights. That’s what these guys stand for. They don’t think our border should be secured. They think we should invite jihadists in who announce they want to kill the infidels. They announce they want to kill Americans. And Jack White and Eminem say, ‘Yeah, that bring them in. Bring those guys in.’ Freak idiots.
But their music is soulful. Just like Green Day. Green Day, there’s not a brain amongst them, I don’t think. But man, can they play really, really killer stuff. Like Tom Morello, Is that his name? Tom Morel? Morello, who played with Springsteen and Rage Against The Machine., when actually they are the machine. Come on Tom, you got to know that. You’re not raging against the machine. You are the machine.
They don’t believe that America should have secure borders, which means they don’t believe in America. Which means they want to have a great successful life in America, but they don’t think you should be able to have one. Hey, Tom, come on my show. Explain… make your case. Good luck.”
Nugent’s remarks are particularly striking in light of Morello’s past comments about their relationship. In a 2017 interview with The Guardian, the Rage Against The Machine guitarist described Nugent as a friend despite their ideological differences, saying: “Ted Nugent’s a good friend to me. We have very similar views on freedom of speech. His libertarian edge and my anarchist edge overlap considerably. Sometimes, if he says something outrageous that will fire up his racist base, I’ll text him to say, ‘Dude. What are you on about?’ We’re able to talk about it as friends as opposed to people on the opposite sides of the barricade.”
