GODSMACK Frontman: 'There Are A Little Bit Too Many Egos Out There When It Comes To Rock Music'

Zoiks! Online recently conducted an interview with GODSMACK frontman Sully Erna. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Zoiks! Online: Now that "Avalon" [Erna's solo album] has been out a while and the fans have had a chance to soak it in, what has the feedback been like?

Sully Erna: It's been great. No problems so far, thankfully. (laughs) We haven't had anyone boo us off the stage or anything. It seems like everyone who comes in contact with the record, even if they hadn't heard of it and they're skeptical about [it] "OK, what is it?" once they hear it, they're like, "Wow, I really like this." So no one so far has bummed this thing out yet, which has been a blessing. The live shows are going great; people are really receptive to it and having a blast. We put something really cool together on that end of things. Ultimately, it's still a developing project, you know, and it's in the early stages and it's going to take a little bit of time to nurture it. If it keeps going the way it is, I can't see this not being successful, because it all feels right at this point.

Zoiks! Online: What feedback have you gotten from the guys in GODSMACK?

Sully Erna: They're OK. You know, they did a project, too, a year or two ago when we took a break, ANOTHER ANIMAL, some side rock band that they did. They knew this was coming. They know I have multiple sides to me and I just can't be that guy all the time. It just so happens that GODSMACK put me in the limelight and kept me busy for the last twelve or fifteen years, or whatever it's been. I was just waiting for the opportunity to step away from it and vent the other side of me. People don't realize that I listen to rock music the least. I have so many different backgrounds in music and I have to explore them. My dad is a musician, he's a trumpet player, and he has been his whole life. My great uncle was a famous composer in Sicily. I have a lot of different backgrounds in music. I don't always just want to play rock, and this was the perfect opportunity to explore another side of me and put together some different musicians and get out there and have a really good time with it and show the world that there are a lot of different kinds of music that I really enjoy writing, not just rock music all the time.

Zoiks! Online: What role does ego play in the big festivals? A lot of you guys are big name bands, is it more competition or more collaboration to put on a great show?

Sully Erna: I've learned over the years that rock and roll is more of a competition and I think that's sad. I don't think it should be. I wish more rock bands would just embrace each other and realize that working competitively towards each other we're working against each other. There was a time when metal dominated Top 40 radio, back in the '80s with MTLEY CRE and all those kinds of bands, VAN HALEN that's what pop music was back then, because that was the popular music. Everybody worked together, bands went out on tour together and all that stuff. Now sometimes I feel that there are a little bit too many egos out there when it comes to rock music, because everyone wants to swing the big dick, everyone wants to have the belt and think they're the king and they have a bigger draw than anybody. It's silly. Everybody needs to just come down and embrace it for what it is. The more the fans see us unite, the more the fans will unite and they won't be segregated and have to pick and choose who they're going to see that year. The festival things are great for that, but there is always backstage drama. It's like, whatever; I don't even care anymore. I honestly bring my George Foreman grill, and I get on stage and I do what I've gotta do and when I'm done, I go and cook buffalo burgers fucking and I don't even talk to anybody, because I've learned that you meet people and you just get more disappointed than anything. For me, I'm always open to working with other artists and I love collaborating, and, I don't know It's one of those things. I don't think music should be a competition, it's a universal language and it should be shared equally. It doesn't matter if your band's more popular or not, it's about allowing the fans to see we're one big family out here and we're creating music for everybody.

Read the entire interview from Zoiks! Online.