Kris Kristofferson is best known for his powerful voice and passionate songwriting. He wasn’t really known for causing drama throughout his career. That being said, the “Bobby McGee” hitmaker did cause a stir or two back in the day. Let’s look at just three controversial moments from Kris Kristofferson!
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1. Defending Sinead O’Connor After ‘SNL’
Sinead O’Connor famously condemned the abuse of children in the Catholic Church during her musical performance on Saturday Night Live back in 1992. The reception was intensely negative. Less than two weeks after that famed SNL appearance, O’Connor took to the stage at Madison Square Garden for a Bob Dylan tribute concert.
Kris Kristofferson introduced her proudly, despite the palpable anger in the audience.
“I’m real proud to introduce this next artist whose name became synonymous with courage and integrity,” he had said before O’Connor’s performance.
O’Connor and her band were booed off stage. Kristofferson gave her some words of encouragement: “Don’t let the b*stards get you down.” He was a real one, though plenty of people were angry at Kristofferson for his support of O’Connor at the time.
2. “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down”
A more lukewarm take on Kris Kristofferson controversial moments, the release of “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down” in 1969 was at least a little bit controversial. The song was written by Kristofferson and first recorded by Ray Stevens in 1969, but it became a no. 1 hit when Johnny Cash recorded it the following year.
This incredible piece of work changed the trajectory of country music and gave Kristofferson the lift he needed to become a full-time, legendary musician. It’s a simple song about being lonely, but the line “I’m wishing Lord that I was stoned” was a bit taboo at the time. Johnny Cash famously refused to omit that line when network executives for his TV show asked him to ahead of his performance of his friend’s song.
3. That Rumored Fight With Toby Keith
This entry on our list of Kris Kristofferson controversial moments is speculative and comes from the mouth of none other than actor Ethan Hawke. A few years back, Hawke wrote about an alleged incident that occurred during Willie Nelson’s birthday concert in 2003. Toby Keith, at the time, said it was “a fictitious f***ing lie.” Kris Kristofferson said he didn’t remember it happening, but that his wife did. Who knows if it actually happened? Still, we’ll include it on this list for entertainment’s sake.
Allegedly, Keith made a rude comment about Kristofferson’s political leanings, which prompted Kristofferson to say, “What the f*** did you just say to me?” Keith allegedly tried to walk away, which prompted Kristofferson to say, “Don’t turn your back to me, boy.” He then went on an angry rant, asking Keith if he ever served in the military.
“The answer is no, you have not,” Kristofferson allegedly said. “Have you ever killed another man? Huh? Have you ever taken another man’s life and then cashed the check your country gave you for doing it? No, you have not. So, shut the f*** up.”
After Hawke’s story was published in Rolling Stone, there was a bit of controversy surrounding the whole debacle. We still don’t know if it actually happened, but we wouldn’t exactly be surprised if it did.
Photo by Theo Wargo/WireImage
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