TOBIAS SAMMET Is 'Sad' About ALICE COOPER's 'Cancelation' In Wake Of Comments About Gender-Affirming Care

EDGUY and AVANTASIA frontman Tobias Sammet says that he is "sad" about the "cancelation" of Alice Cooper in the wake of the legendary rocker's comments about gender-affirming care.

Earlier today (Tuesday, August 29),Tobias took to his Instagram page to write: "On a personal note I just read what my RadioBob colleague and AVANTASIA 'toy master' Alice Cooper had to go through last week, about his cancellation and it really makes me sad. I am not saying I know whether to agree or disagree with what he said, I simply know too little about the issue. But as far as I understand, he replied to a question in an interview, regarding gender identity and phrased concerns about how to deal with it as parents of kids for example. It was not a radical, hate-spewing view, it was 'what I'm afraid of...'"

He continued: "It's a delicate topic and the best answers would be given by people who are affected, who struggle themselves or who help and support those affected. But I also believe every person willing to be a respectful part of society should have the right to respectfully voice their personal concerns or reservations on any topic without being shredded to pieces. I am sure even Alice wants everyone to live their lives in freedom and peace and safety, whatever your sexual orientation, gender, nationality. That's common sense for a loving, caring, respectful person. To rip him apart and call him the arch fiend because he voiced his concerns about how to deal with certain aspects of a complex topic... I guess it won't result in better understanding, empathy and dialogue. It will just divide further. I think this cancellation reflex is way more counter productive than what Alice could ever say, rightfully or not.

"Whether one agrees or not with what he said, if we cancel someone like him, we might have to cancel big parts of the world's population and that will lead to Armageddon. Peace everyone, T".

It is not clear what the "cancelation" is that Tobias is referring to, but cosmetics company Vampyre Cosmetics recently called off its partnership with Alice after Cooper called gender-affirming care "a fad" and claimed that discourse surrounding the trans community has "gone now to the point of absurdity."

Less than two weeks after Cooper signed a deal with Vampyre Cosmetics — which markets spooky and gothic-themed makeup, lipsticks, palettes and lashes — the 75-year-old singer was dropped by the company over his comments in an interview with the site Stereogum.

"In light of recent statements by Alice Cooper we will no longer be doing a makeup collaboration," the company wrote on Instagram in announcing it was cutting ties with Cooper.

"We stand with all members of the LGBTQIA+ community and believe everyone should have access to healthcare. All pre-order sales will be refunded."

In the aforementioned interview, Alice said: "I'm understanding that there are cases of transgender, but I’m afraid that it's also a fad. I find it wrong when you've got a six-year-old kid who has no idea. He just wants to play, and you're confusing him telling him, 'Yeah, you're a boy, but you could be a girl if you want to be.'"

Cooper also echoed false claims proliferated by anti-trans politicians and activists online that kids these days are identifying as cats and using litter boxes.

"I think that's so confusing to a kid. It's even confusing to a teenager," he said. "You're still trying to find your identity, and yet here's this thing going on, saying, 'Yeah, but you can be anything you want. You can be a cat if you want to be.' I mean, if you identify as a tree… And I'm going, 'Come on! What are we in, a Kurt Vonnegut novel?' It's so absurd, that it's gone now to the point of absurdity."

Alice went on to repeat the false belief that transgender women pose a threat to cis women and girls in public restrooms.

"I can see somebody really taking advantage of this, though," Cooper said. "A guy can walk into a woman's bathroom at any time and just say, 'I just feel like I'm a woman today' and have the time of his life in there, and he's not in the least bit… He's just taking advantage of that situation. Well, that's going to happen. Somebody's going to get raped, and the guy's going to say, 'Well, I felt like a girl that day, and then I felt like a guy.' Where do you draw this line?"

Cooper also blasted "the whole woke thing," wondering: "Who's making the rules? Is there a building somewhere in New York where people sit down every day and say, 'Okay, we can't say 'mother' now. We have to say 'birthing person.' Get that out on the wire right now?' Who is this person that’s making these rules? I don't get it," Alice said, adding: "I'm not being old school about it. I'm being logical about it."

Vampyre Cosmetics describes itself as a "proudly women owned, disabled owned and LGBT+ owned" company whose "products are vegan, cruelty free and talc free."

"We are queer, disabled, and proudly neurodiverse women working round the clock to bring you cosmetics so uniquely packaged… you exclaim 'Holy Crap!' when you see it," Karen Holton, the managing owner of the company, said.

Trans businesswoman Wynne Nowland wrote in Newsweek in June: "There is no statistical evidence to support the idea that women or children are unsafe with trans-inclusive bathroom policies, nor is there any evidence to support that there are men dressing as women to gain access to bathrooms for nefarious purposes."

Last week, Carlos Santana apologized for his "insensitive" comments about the trans community. The 76-year-old musician faced criticism when a video of him making anti-transgender comments during a concert in New Jersey in July resurfaced on social media.

"When God made you and me, before we came out of the womb, you know who you are and what you are," the guitarist is seen saying in the clip.

He continued: "Later on when you grow up, and you see things and you start believing that you could be something that sounds good but you know it ain't right, because a woman is a woman and a man is a man — that's it.”

"Whatever you wanna do in the closet, that's your business, I'm okay with that," Santana added, before referencing his friendship with his "brother Dave Chapelle," who also faced criticism for anti-LGBTQ comments made in his 2021 Netflix comedy special "The Closer".

The criticism Santana faced after the video went viral prompted him to release a statement on his Facebook page, where he wrote: "I am sorry for my insensitive comments. They don't reflect that I want to honor and respect all person’s ideals and beliefs. I realize that what I said hurt people and that was not my intent. I sincerely apologize to the transgender community and everyone I offended."

KISS frontman Paul Stanley has been criticized for describing gender-affirming care for kids as a "sad and dangerous fad" and TWISTED SISTER's Dee Snider was consequently dropped off of the lineup for San Francisco Pride for seemingly agreeing with Paul.

Tobias Sammet photo credit: Kevin Nixon (courtesy of Nuclear Blast Records) / Alice Cooper photo credit: Jenny Risher