Third Eye Blind Troll GOP Crowd at Cleveland Concert
Photos by Theo Wargo/Getty Music News Third Eye BlindThis week, the Republican National Convention is occupying the otherwise great city of Cleveland, Ohio. The convention has already spawned blatant examples of plagiarism as well as other ignorance of intellectual property rights.
So, when Third Eye Blind took the stage at the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame last night to perform a charity concert for a gathered crowd of Grand Ole Party affiliates, it could’ve just been a performance of the group’s radio hits to placate an already-privileged crowd.
Instead, the band saw an educational opportunity. Rather than play “Semi-Charmed Life,” they played ultra-deep cut “Non-Dairy Creamer” from their 2008 Red Star EP, which includes the shouted refrain, “young, gay Republicans.”
Before launching into other hit “Jumper,” which is about a gay friend committing suicide by jumping off a bridge, frontman Stephan Jenkins took the time to ensure that the crowd understood what the song’s themes meant.
Third Eye Blind tonite at #RNCinCLE event: We believe in tolerance, acceptance ???????? (Followed by boos) pic.twitter.com/WPRIEMZmEp
— Tina (@tinpant) July 20, 2016
“To love this song is to take into your heart the message, and to actually … have a feeling to arrive and move forward and not live your life in fear and imposing that fear on other people,” says Jenkins in the video.
Billboard reports that Jenkins further taunted the conservative crowd by asking, “Raise your hand if you believe in science.”
Despite boos throughout, Jenkins and co. weren’t fazed. “You can boo all you want, but I’m the motherfucking artist up here,” the frontman says dryly in the video below.
.@ThirdEyeBlind trolls #RNCinCLEpic.twitter.com/zXIKWdO5Hj
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) July 20, 2016
The band later thanked their supporters on Twitter and showed their delight in pissing off all those who were offended.
@LWhiteGRLprob good
— Third Eye Blind (@ThirdEyeBlind) July 20, 2016
@hunterw Great question. We were not, as musicians on call were well aware of who we are and our take on things (like science and rights!)
— Third Eye Blind (@ThirdEyeBlind) July 20, 2016
Needless to say, much of the world thanks Third Eye Blind today. Celebrate by enjoying Paste Cloud audio of the band playing the song they so pointedly withheld from the GOP crowd during a 1998 show at the Filmore in San Francisco.