Rock drama is as old as time. Usually, it's a lot of interpersonal band drama, like the Oasis brothers arguing with each other or Van Halen sifting through different lead singers. But sometimes, you get the rare feuds amongst other bands. For Billie Joe Armstrong and Green Day, starting out saw veteran band Jane's Addiction be incredibly thorny to them. Consequently, Perry Farrell and his band tried to kick Green Day off of a highly lucrative festival opportunity. It's only right they retaliated.
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Recently, PEOPLE captured an excerpt from the new book, Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock's Wildest Festival. It opens up about the festival's origins and the many wild stories revolving around its history. One in particular sees Billie Joe Armstrong grapple with Perry Farrell of Jane's Addiction and how he hated Green Day. Apparently, Farrell thought the American Idiot band were essentially record label plants, a glorified boy band. Despite the festival wanting Green Day on board, Perry fervently pushed for them not to make the cut.
Billie Joe Armstrong Recalls How Perry Farrell Didn't Want Green Day at Lollapalooza
"[Farrell] wasn't a part of that conversation, because he'd checked out, but they asked us to play it and we said yes," Armstrong recalls. "And it was going to be [Japanese noise band] the Boredoms on the first half, and us on the second half as the opening band. And then all of a sudden, he comes back in and he's like, 'I don't want them on the bill.'"
Eventually, stage manager John Rubeli changes Farrell's mind by giving proof to Green Day's credentials. However, the deed was already done and Billie Joe Armstrong was feeling pretty spiteful. "I think that made us want to play even more, actually, because we wanted to prove that he had his head very far up his own a--," he explains.
Consequently, Billie Joe and the rest of Green Day dedicate their song "Chump" to the Jane's Addiction singer. Evidently, it didn't go over so smoothly. "I'm like, 'I'm not going to take any f---ing s--- from anybody. I'm not going to take any s--- from anybody as much as Perry Farrell's not going to take any s--- from anybody.' He had minions that would come up and say, 'Perry Farrell's really angry that you dedicated 'Chump' to him.' And I'm Like, 'Tell him to stop acting like one,'" Armstrong recalls.
Eventually, Billie Joe and Perry shook hands at Woodstock '94. But there's no telling if they actually patched things up behind the scenes.
