As the frontman of iconic pop-punk band Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong rarely minces words. The “Basket Case” singer-songwriter, 53, doesn’t often leave fans guessing as to what’s on his mind. With his trademark candor, Armstrong spoke about which “f—ing a–hole” alt-rocker tried to blacklist Green Day from a legendary music festival.
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Perry Farrell Thought Green Day Was a Boy Band
With vocalist Perry Farrell at the helm, Jane’s Addiction arrived to the ’80s Los Angeles musical scene with a sound entirely their own. Blending punk, metal and psychedelic rock, the band’s popularity spread across the nation.
In 1991, members of Jane’s Addiction prepared to go their separate ways amid rumors of infighting between Farrell and guitarist Eric Avery. Wanting to give fans a proper farewell, the Pornos for Pyros frontman founded the Lollapalooza music festival. Before it became a cultural phenomenon, the first Lollapalooza lineup featured Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Butthole Surfers, Nine Inch Nails, and more.
John Rubeli, the event’s stage manager at the time, recalled that Farrell was generally open to most booking suggestions. That is, until someone proposed Green Day for the 1994 festival. “He was like, ‘They’re a boy band. I don’t want to book a boy band,’” Rubeli recalled in Richard Bienstock and Tom Beaujour’s new book, Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival.
LOLLAPALOOZA: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival is out now—an explosive oral history of the iconic fest by NYT bestsellers Richard Bienstock & Tom Beaujour. https://t.co/asy2iT1mr4
— Eric Alper 🎧 (@ThatEricAlper) March 30, 2025
Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong spoke more bluntly. “Perry was a f—ing a–hole, straight up,” he said. “He wasn’t a part of that conversation, because he’d checked out, but they asked us to play it and we said yes… And then all of a sudden, he comes back in and he’s like, ‘I don’t want them on the bill.’ Apparently, he thought that we were a band that was put together by [record executive] Mo Ostin at Warner Bros.”
Billie Joe Armstrong Reveals How Green Day Got Their Revenge
Eventually, Rubeli persuaded Farrell to allow Green Day, fresh off the success of their breakout hit Dookie, to join Lollapalooza. Much to their disappointment, however, the “Been Caught Stealing” singer only agreed to book them for half of the tour.
However, Green Day would ultimately get the last word, as Billie Joe Armstrong dedicated their Lollapalooza performance of 1994’s “Chump” to Perry Farrell. Unsurprisingly, the Godfather of Alternative Music was not amused.
“He had minions that would come up and say, ‘Perry Farren’s really angry that you dedicated ‘Chump’ to him,’” Armstrong said. “And I’m like, ‘Tell him to stop acting like one.’”
Featured image by Medios y Media/Getty Images
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