Green Day changes 'American Idiot' lyrics aimed at Elon Musk
On Sunday, January 19, Green Day took the stage at the Calabash concert at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
This weekend marked a dream come true for many South African Green Day fans as the band brought their energy to the 2025 Calabash concert.
During their performance, lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong took a moment to share his opinion about tech mogul Elon Musk.
While performing in Musk's home country, Armstrong altered the lyrics of their song 'American Idiot', changing the line "I'm not a part of a redneck agenda" to "I'm not a part of the Elon agenda."
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@soft_dom_senpai Green Day ✊
♬ original sound - 𝕊𝕖𝕟𝕡𝕒𝕚🍉
This isn't the first time the band has tweaked the lyrics of their politically charged hit, originally written to criticise the George W Bush administration.
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More recently, during 'New Year's Rockin' Eve', Green Day sang, "not a part of the MAGA agenda".
According to Rolling Stone, Musk was displeased with the lyric change and even tweeted about it.
"Green Day goes from raging against the machine to milquetoastedly raging for it."
Green Day's performance at Calabash took place just a day before Donald Trump's inauguration for his second term as US president.
Musk also attended the inauguration and, like Trump, drew significant attention.
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During the celebrations, the Tesla and X owner made headlines by performing a gesture resembling a Roman salute while addressing the crowd at the Capitol One Arena in Washington, DC.
"This is what victory feels like," Musk told the audience.
"This was no ordinary victory; this was a fork in the road of human civilisation. I just want to say thank you for making it happen."
Later, while standing behind a podium adorned with the presidential seal, Musk struck his chest, pursed his lips, and extended his stiff right arm toward the crowd with his palm down – a gesture many compared to the "Sieg Heil" salute associated with Adolf Hitler.
He repeated the gesture, adding, "My heart goes out to you."
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IMAGE: Instagram/ Green Day