MICHAEL SWEET On Perception That He Runs STRYPER Like A Dictatorship: 'It's Just Not True'

In a new interview with The Front Row Report With Reggie Edwards, STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet spoke about how his songwriting process has evolved over the four decades of the band's existence. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I personally think that that's my greatest gift in terms of the abilities God's given me. I'm a guitar player, I'm a singer, but I feel like I shine more at songwriting, and I get more excited about it.

"When I sit down to write, it's always a few weeks before we start recording," he continued. "I don't have any songs, and I sit down in my studio and I write a song a day. Once I have one song finished, I go down the next day, I write another song until there's 11 songs or 12 songs. And then we go in a studio, I teach the songs to the guys and we record them. And it's been that way really from the beginning, starting with [the 1984 EP] 'The Yellow And Black Attack', but the difference between now and then is we spent more time working out songs [back then]. Now it's a lot faster process, and it's not because it's rushed [or] because we have to; it's just because that's the way it is. That's the way it works.

"But I love writing," Sweet added. "Everyone has this perception that we've always written songs as a band. That's just not true. It's never been that way. I've always been open and honest about that. And sometimes people think I'm a dictator and I hold a gun to the guys' heads and I don't let 'em write and whatnot, and it's just not true. I give music to my brother all the time and say, 'Hey, why don't you write the lyrics?' Because Robert's [Sweet, STRYPER drummer] a good lyricist. I say, 'Why don't you write the lyrics for the song?' And three months later, when it's time for me to sing the song, the lyrics aren't done. So I wind up doing it myself. And it's perceived often as I don't let the guys do anything, and it couldn't be further from the truth. And I'm letting you know that, I'm going off on that a bit of tangent, because I see this online every day. I just saw something at breakfast an hour ago, someone saying that very same thing."

Michael also addressed his reputation as one of the most outspoken musicians in metal when it comes to his beliefs and thoughts. He said: "The thing is, I'm a very open book. So when I do interviews, I speak my heart. The other guys don't. And what I mean by that is when my brother does interviews, he's much more reserved and cautious about what he says. Now, behind the scenes, he'll say what's on his heart, and I hear it all. I hear it all, 'cause I travel with him. Same with Oz [Fox, STRYPER guitarist]. Same with Perry [Richardson, STRYPER bassist]. I hear everything that you hear me saying in interviews and then some. But see, people's perception is they don't say anything bad, I say everything bad. I'm the dictator, I'm the tyrant, I'm this, I'm that. And then when I talk about it, like I'm doing now, I'm a crybaby. I'm going off and I'm getting upset about it. And I guess the point I'm trying to make — as much as I love these guys, the public perception of this band isn't at all true. It's always been that way. When I left the band, people hated me. I still have people come up to me to this day and say, 'I hated you. I was so mad at you because you left the band, you left the other three guys. You betrayed them. You abandoned them.' And I'm, like, wow. I left this band to save my marriage. I had to. I had to. And I wanted my marriage to survive. I wanted to be a father to my children. And the perception is I was an asshole."

STRYPER's latest studio album, "When We Were Kings", came out in September.

The band recently completed a 40th-anniversary tour, which was described as "a celebration of both classic hits and new-era fan favorites, including outfit changes and an exciting new show production."

In December 2023, Michael underwent partial thyroidectomy, the surgery to remove part of his thyroid gland. It is the most common surgery for thyroid cancer.

Formed 41 years ago, STRYPER's name comes from Isaiah 53:5, which states: "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

STRYPER's albums include "To Hell With The Devil", "Second Coming", "No More Hell To Pay", "Fallen", "God Damn Evil", "Even The Devil Believes" and "The Final Battle".

Photo credit: Alex Solca Photography