Tenacious D’s Kyle Gass in Hot Water After Trump Joke
The joke about Donald Trump’s failed assassination attempt came about during the band’s Sydney show on Sunday.
Image via @tenacious (Facebook)
Tenacious D’s Australian tour has come under fire after Kyle Gass made a joke about former American President Donald Trump at the band’s Sydney show on Sunday.
As you are probably aware, Trump was the target of a failed assassination attempt on the weekend. Attending a rally in Pennsylvania, several shots were fired in his direction after he took to the stage, with the former President nicked in the ear by a bullet. Secret Service agents were quick to intervene and rushed a fist-pumping Trump off-stage, with the would-be assassin, revealed to be 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, killed at the scene by the Secret Service.
The attempt on Trump’s life has elicited a wide range of responses, especially from the music community. Known Trump supporter Kid Rock posted a video on Instagram proclaiming “You fuck with Trump, you fuck with me,” while Big & Rich’s John Rich took to X to post a photo of Trump with his fist in the air alongside the caption “They couldn’t beat him in a fair contest, so they tried to kill him. BUT THEY MISSED.”
There have also been more levelled responses. A video of Dave Matthews from the Dave Matthews Band shows him telling a crowd in Virginia “That’s no way to behave. My condolences to the family of the people who were hurt, but good grief man, that’s no way to run a democracy, that’s no way to be part of a democracy.”
The latest music star to give their two cents is Gass. At Tenacious D’s Sydney performance on the weekend, Jack Black presented Gass with a cake to celebrate his 64th birthday. After getting the audience to sing ‘Happy Birthday’, Black asked his bandmate to make a wish, with Gass telling the crowd he hopes they “Don’t miss Trump next time.”
All of this was captured by TikTok user Noise Pollution, whose clip has sparked intense debate among people who believe the quip was funny and those who feel it crossed the line. You can watch the incident below in a video posted by Noise Pollution on TikTok.
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The TikTok has received a mixed bag of comments, from one fan revealing “Aaand I like them even more” to another commenting “Republicans triggered and partaking in cancel culture lol.” It hasn’t all been pro-Tenacious D, with one person writing “Wow, that’s pathetic” and another calling the band ‘disgusting leftists’.
It’s not just Noise Pollution’s comment section that’s blown up, with Gass’ joke causing a shitstorm online. Republicans and Trump supporters are condemning Gass for his comments, which has in turn led to them being labelled “woke” for taking the joke so seriously.
Known Sydney shock jock Kylie Sandilands is one of many who found the joke upsetting and has banned the D from appearing on his show for life.
“Someone’s promoting the assassination of another human being? Seriously, regardless of whether you like someone or not, wanting someone killed and promoting it is the worst thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” Sandilands said on the Kyle and Jackie O show this morning.
“That’s some serious, twisted shit. And whoever that is, is banned for life. I never want to speak to him again. Would we speak to this person?”
Considering some of the things Sandilands has said over the years, it sounds like someone throwing stones in a glasshouse.
Tenacious D are yet to respond to the controversy as they continue their Australian tour, with shows in Brisbane, Melbourne and Adelaide still to come.
