CLAWFINGER's ZAK TELL Doesn't Feel His Band's Anti-Racist Song 'N*****' Was That Misunderstood: 'It's More Of A Problem Now Than It Was Then'

In a new interview with Made In Metal, vocalist Zak Tell of the long-running Swedish rap/metal combo CLAWFINGER spoke about the band's controversial single "N*****", an anti-racism statement that caused quite a stir and was a massive success. The track was included on CLAWFINGER's debut album, 1993's "Deaf Dumb Blind", which sold over 600,000 copies worldwide and was critically acclaimed in Swedish press. Asked if the message of "N*****" was "misunderstood" in certain territories because CLAWFINGER was made up of white musicians, Zak said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "In America — definitely. We never played a gig in America, ever. I remember we got a fax from a record company. Someone from our label in Sweden was in the States shopping for a record deal and they played them some of our songs. 'N*****' was one of them. And we got a fax back that said, 'White guys who try to tell black people how to live their lives ought to have their balls cut off.' So, in America, definitely.

"To be honest. I don't feel like it was that misunderstood," Tell explained. "I feel like the majority of people back then were smart enough to read the lyrics and understand the bigger picture. I think it's more of a problem now than it was then, because everything is taken out of context now. Nobody has the patience to listen to a whole song. A lot of people have a ten-second attention span. So if you hear a chorus like that, you are gonna misunderstand it, 'cause that's all you're gonna hear. But once again, back then, most of the time, it led to very interesting discussions with a lot of people. And most of the time, the majority of the people who were frustrated about it or found it wrong or provocative were white people or pink people or whatever you wanna call it, whereas a lot of African-Americans or black people, or whatever you choose to call it, actually really appreciated it. But then, of course, there were assholes as well.

"I remember back in the beginning, we had a lot of skinheads in Sweden, and they thought it was a song for them," Zak continued. "And when they realized it wasn't a song for them, they got pissed off, 'cause they thought it was like an anthem for them. But no, it wasn't.

"I would say that without that song, we would not have gotten to experience everything we've experienced," Tell added. "And that song has mostly been positive for us. Could we have written it in an easier way or a way that was more easy to understand? Probably, yeah. But I was 21 when I wrote that lyric. I wasn't thinking ahead of what might happen in 20 years or how people might understand it. I was speaking from the heart, because it was something that I thought was worrying and something that I thought was strange and wrong, and for that reason it's never really been a problem. And also, last but not least, if you look at the body of our work, everything about us is anti-fascist and anti-racist. So if you look at the big CLAWFINGER picture, you have to be pretty fucking stupid to misinterpret us as a racist band."

When the interviewer noted that "stupidity grows everywhere", Zak concurred. "Yeah, it does. It does," he said. "I mean, we are not doing ourselves any favors as a human race. We are pathetically stupid at times. And I'm not saying I'm any better. We're all struggling to make sense of who the fuck we are and what it is we're supposed to be doing here. And I think we have a long way to go before we start doing the right thing. We need to be more open-minded. We need to have more patience with people. We need to stop judging so quickly. We need to understand that everyone is different, but everyone has the same basic needs. We want food on our table, a roof over our heads, we want our families to be happy. It doesn't matter where you are from or what skin color you have. We all want those same things. How fucking hard can it be?"

Zak went on to highlight the ridiculousness of racism, saying:  "We have this stupid idea of — I don't know what it is; [it's] some kind of fear. As soon as someone doesn't look exactly like we do, we assume that there must be something wrong with them, or they're crooks. But that's based on how we look. Everyone — not everyone, but we all look different in different parts of the world. So what makes the pinkness I have the one that is considered better or more intelligent? It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. It makes zero sense. It's just you become accustomed to what it is you are and what you have and the place you happen to live. But it's all coincidence. I didn't choose to be born in this part of the world with this skin. It's just something I happen to be. It's ridiculous."

Back in June 2024, Tell was asked why CLAWFINGER doesn't perform "N*****" live anymore. He responded: "It's just a matter of being respectful to the fact that times have changed. There's a new political climate. You've got the whole Black Lives movement. You've got a completely different awareness. And out of respect for the way things are in the world right now, it's not the right song to play. And it's a much bigger issue than just a three-and-a-half-minute song. So it's almost making it too easy or making it too… It's too serious of a topic and a problem to let a song be more important than the big picture."

He continued: "So no, we don't play that song anymore. And it's not because we don't stand by it, 'cause we stand by those lyrics in that song 100 percent, but it's to be respectful to the way the world is right now. And maybe that's sad, but it's also the reality. And we're not one of these MÖTLEY CRÜE bands who just says, 'Fuck you. We're gonna do whatever the fuck we want because we're MÖTLEY CRÜE.' We're a bit more respectful than that, and we like the idea of changing with the times. Yes, in our world, we're the most important band in the world, of course, but in reality, we're just a small stupid fucking rock band. And this topic is so much bigger than that. So, as of now, it's not a song we play, unfortunately."

CLAWFINGER's long-awaited comeback album, "Before We All Die", will arrive on February 20 via Perception, a division of Reigning Phoenix Music.

CLAWFINGER are considered pioneers of European rap-metal. Formed in Stockholm in the early 1990s, the Swedish-Norwegian band made an explosive debut with "Deaf Dumb Blind" (1993),blending aggressive guitar riffs with politically charged lyrics and rap vocals. The album sold over 600,000 copies worldwide — more than 250,000 in Germany alone — and won a Swedish Grammis award in the hard rock/metal category.

CLAWFINGER's follow-up, "Use Your Brain" (1995) continued their success with chart placements across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Sweden. Over the years, they released seven studio albums, including "A Whole Lot Of Nothing", "Zeros & Heroes", "Hate Yourself With Style" and "Life Will Kill You", selling over 1.5 million records worldwide.

Known for their direct, riff-driven sound and strong political stance, CLAWFINGER address topics such as racism, political delusion, drug policy, environmental destruction, and social inequality. In the 1990s, they toured intensively with acts like ALICE IN CHAINS, MEGADETH and FAITH NO MORE and appeared at major festivals including Rock Am Ring, Roskilde and Monsters Of Rock in South America.

After a brief hiatus, the band returned in 2014 and has since released new singles like "Save Our Souls" (2017) and "Environmental Patients" (2022]) In 2025, CLAWFINGER signed a new label deal with Perception.