Monday, November 19, 2012

Fuck you, Chris Brown.

Actual metal news sites have obviously picked up on this already (Metal Sucks, Blabbermouth) but talentless hiphop artist Chris Brown made a stir among us basement dwelling trolls by appearing in public wearing this.



Apparently there's a website that "custom makes" this kind of faux punk attire for people who want to co-opt metal, punk, and related subculture imagery for the sake of "fashion".  This is the worst thing that can happen to metal. Seriously.  Metal is a genre of music that by definition is so rebellious, so raw, and so ugly sounding that it shouldn't be allowed to be a fashion statement by a dude who's only famous because he got arrested for beating the shit out of his slightly more talented and frequently more naked girlfriend.  By wearing a PREMADE jacket with band patches of artists he probably hasn't even heard (I mean, nobody listens to Excel....NOBODY...), he turns what is a lifestyle or at least a passionate interest of so many of us dorks who deal with the daily awkwardness of "so what do you listen to?" into a fucking costume that we put on to portray an image, not a part of our identity that remains regardless of how we're dressed or how long our hair is.  It's not even "posing", because I don't think he even gives a crap about the metal and hardcore subcultures.  Perhaps he has a copy of Metallica's black album collecting dust on his shelf somewhere.  Chances are, Chris Brown would tell you he's into all kinds of music, and then would name off an embarrassing list consisting of Ozzy, Van Halen, and Aerosmith.  If I'm wrong, I'm fully prepared to retract my statements (though the jacket is still stupid...)

There's hiphop and rap artists who are legit into metal.  I'm not just talking about Necro either.  Kool Keith is a known fan of Slayer and Pantera.  Ice-T started his own damn (mediocre) band!  You know what else?  Because dudes like Kool Keith are actual fucking fans, they don't make a joke or fashion out of it either.  In fact, they don't violate one of metal's core rules:

Don't wear the shirt unless you actually listen to the band.

I suppose there really isn't anything that can be done about it, so I hope that at least bands who have their logos and likenesses used (such as those horrible pink Misfits girlie shirts at Hot Topic) are getting paid and that this fashion trend dies quickly.

(/end rant)