SKILLET's JOHN COOPER Says He 'Got In A Lot Of Trouble' For Making Fun Of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE

In a new interview with Real Talk With Zuby, John Cooper, the frontman and bassist for the Grammy-nominated Christian rock band SKILLET, spoke about the "backlash" he has faced for speaking about his faith in secular spaces and voicing his opinions on hot-button social and political issues. He said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're, thank God, a successful band. But, man, the intense backlash about standing up for what you believe, if you're on the conservative side, or even just the libertarian side, or … they don't even like [prominent former Democrats] Elon Musk anymore. They don't like Tulsi Gabbard anymore. They hate RFK [Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] with a passion now. I mean, it's really insane. And I think that part of the not having the conversation thing is to do with this fake tolerance because they really believe if I even have a conversation with you, I'm legitimizing a Nazi.

"I was trying to convince someone in the industry recently who… SKILLET's been canceled multiple times because of these things," Cooper continued. "And I was saying, I was, like, 'I don't think you understand. I might be the most actual inclusive, tolerant person in the music industry. Okay?' And they're, like, 'Well, no, you're not because you're against abortion.' And I'm, like, 'No, no, no. I've spent my career touring with people who are my friends.' My kids are always on the road, so they are friends to my kids. We eat dinner together. We have fun together. We hang out together every single day. Most all of them don't agree with me on religion, on politics, on abortion, on the border, on whatever. And it has never come between our friendship — ever. It wouldn't even cross my mind, because it's so against my faith as well. And so I'm actually far more inclusive than you guys because you want you can't even hear it."

Cooper went on to say that he is "optimistic" about President-elect Donald Trump's second term, particularly as it relates to upholding the First Amendment and ensuring that the government doesn't censor people and businesses.

"Am I crazy to be as optimistic as I am?" Cooper said. "Something feels like it's shifting. And I am not some Trump sycophant or something like that. I'm absolutely not. I don't think Trump's a prophet of God or any of the weird things people say, I think, online. I believe that politics cannot save us. I think only God can save us. I love politics. I think it matters. I am feeling extremely optimistic, and I don't know if I'm crazy to feel that.

"Not to get too preachy, but the Bible says that if you seek for the truth, you'll find it," he continued. "If you seek the truth, you'll find it. And I am seeing… I don't know. I'm just so optimistic because all of a sudden, it just feels like in the last six months, I'm, like, 'Wait a minute. Another person that I know is speaking the truth.' That was never the case for the last several [years]… To me, every day, it's getting a little brighter and brighter and brighter. And I'm starting to be, like, 'Okay, okay.' And again, I think it's really great when it's people that don't agree with me about everything, but it's, like, 'Oh, it's totally fine to have this conversation.' And that's just better for everybody. That takes me back to what it was like when I was growing up. It was never like this when I was growing up. I never lost friends 'cause you voted for George Bush. It's, like, who cares? It was never like that."

John added: "I remember I got in a lot of trouble in 2021 because I was, I think rightly, making fun of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. 'Cause RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's anti-government and they were doing these, like, vax-only shows. And I just was, like, 'Well, it's just crazy that me, the Christian rock star, that I'm the punk rock revolutionary now.'" (Editor's note: RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello has vehemently denied that COVID-19 mask and vaccine requirements were enforced at any of the band's shows. "While I am a big supporter of science, hear my words: NO RAGE fan was EVER required to present anything other than a ticket to see the band", he wrote in a social media post earlier this year.)

Cooper originally brought up RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE in a 2021 interview with Apologia Radio. While insisting that COVID-19 that vaccines were a tool of government control "more about tyranny than they are actually keeping people safe", he said: "A lot the bands, they just don't know what to do … You're in an entertainment industry that's largely driven by social media and media at large. You're not allowed to speak anything against… I mean, you've got RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE telling people that if they don't get a vaccine… RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE has become the machine. It's crazy. I'm, like, wait a minute – I'm the revolutionary here? I'm the revolutionary and RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE is just 'government rock' now."

It is not clear what Cooper thinks about Trump's supposed commitment to free expression, seeing as Trump champions freedom of speech for himself and his allies while attacking it when it protects his critics and political opponents. Trump has regularly attacked individual journalists and the press in general for unfavorable news coverage. He called journalists the "enemy of the people" and removed ones he did not like from press events and rallies. More recently, Trump has pledged to toss reporters in jail and strip major television networks of their broadcast licenses as retribution for coverage he didn't like, according to NPR.

This past January, Cooper blasted Demi Lovato's pro-choice song "Swine", calling it "pure evil' and accusing Americans of "cheer[ing] on baby murder" by aborting "eight hundred thousand babies a year."

John has written in depth about his views in the two books he has released so far, "Awake & Alive to Truth", which came out in December 2020, and "Wimpy, Weak, And Woke", which became available in late 2023.

Cooper told Baptist Press about how his faith directs him to speak out on cultural issues: "If Jesus is the truth, then that means He has something to say about culture, politics, abortion and sexuality. The Bible has something to say about these things."

In various interviews over the years, John has said that he "always had faith in God" and that his mother was a "Jesus fanatic." He also claimed that he was willing to put his career on the line to take a stand for Christ.

SKILLET's latest album, "Revolution", arrived in November via the band's Hear It Loud imprint.