Ex-SCORPIONS Drummer JAMES KOTTAK Says Black Americans Are Disproportionately Represented In Commercials

Former SCORPIONS and current KINGDOM COME drummer James Kottak says that blacks in American ads and commercials are way overrepresented relative to their population share.

Late Tuesday night (November 26),Kottak took to his Twitter to write: "OK so the percentage of black Americans in the US is about 13% so why are they represented 50 to 60% on all commercials? Just saying call me out if you have a reasonable argument?"

A short time later, he added: "Maybe none of you have any balls to speak the truth?"

This is not the first time Kottak has called out what he sees as disproportionate representation of certain races in advertising. This past October, he tweeted that he was "sick" of seeing commercials featuring "interracial couples," insisting that "this is not reality. It is Hollywood shoving it down our throat," he added. "I don't have one friend or friends who live in this category...just saying"

According to The New York Times, a number of companies and brands like JPMorgan Chase, Humira, State Farm, Smile Direct Club, Coors Light, Macy's, Tide and Cadillac have recently featured multiracial couples or families in their advertising.

Sarah Block, the executive vice president and creative director of Leo Burnett USA, who has worked on several ads depicting multiracial families, including commercials for Kraft, told the paper that the prevalence of these commercials "is a reflection of modern society. It's portraying the situation that is out in the world," she said.

In recent months, Kottak has repeatedly used Twitter as a way to voice his controversial views. On November 3, he opined that "all law enforcement should be men." In September, he raised eyebrows when he questioned whether climate change is real, writing in a series of since-deleted tweets: "Tell me when one time you have seen 'killed from climate change' or 'death from second hand smoke' appeared on a gravestone....and I am a total anti smoker... it's all b s"

Back in July, he angered some people on the social media platform when he wrote that "anyone against America is a socialist communist asshole."

The unusual Independence Day greetings came after the musician wished his 18 thousand followers a happy holiday on Twitter.

"Happy Fourth.... Trump rules!" the 56-year-old musician wrote, adding in a separate tweet: "Any one against America is a socialist communist a hole . Happy fourth"

In June, Kottak, who calls himself a "news political junkie" on Twitter, made BLABBERMOUTH.NETheadlines when he said that America should take care of its "homeless problem" before accepting any more "outsiders."

Kottak has spent much of the last year touring with the reunited KINGDOM COME, also featuring guitarists Danny Stag and Rick Steier, bassist Johnny B. Frank and singer Keith St. John (formerly of MONTROSE and LYNCH MOB).

In September 2016, Kottak was dismissed from SCORPIONS during his well-publicized battle with alcoholism and was replaced by former MOTÖRHEAD member Mikkey Dee.

SCORPIONS guitarist Matthias Jabs later said that he and his bandmates "had to make" the decision to fire Kottak, explaining that they gave the drummer "all the chances" to get better. "We reached the point — or he reached the point — where it was just not worth it," Jabs said.

Last fall, Kottak told Detroit's 101 WRIF radio station that his recovery was "a work in progress." He explained: "Over the last 10 years, I would say I was 90 percent sober, and then I'd have these struggles and I'd go through a bad two- or three-week period. So right now it's, like I said, to use a cliché, it's one day at a time and I work the program. I still go out, and if you wanna drink a bottle of Jack in front of me, go for it — [it's] no big deal — but it is, like I said, a work in progress."