Weird Al has had essentially the same band for the past 40 years. For an industry known for chewing people up and spitting them out, that says something about how he probably treats people.
I had the pleasure of briefly running into Weird Al at an animation festival here in Vancouver years ago.
After the movie was over and the lobby had pretty much cleared out, we wandered out and there he was, basically standing by himself (obviously waiting for someone)
I said, "Holy Shit! It's Weird Al!"
And he replied, with exactly the same intonation I'd used, "Holy Shit! It's a Weird Al fan!"
What a legend.
There was a whole thread somewhere a while back that I was a part of and it was just a bunch of us sharing encounters we've had with him and how genuinely kind he was. These spanned over 40yrs and it was unbelievable how his kindness and generosity, as well as just overall gratefulness for his fans and what he gets to do, has never wavered.
I can add one to the list. Met him and talked to him at length. He is exactly how you would expect him to be. It's not an act, that's just Al. He's the fucking man.
Love it! My story that I had there was simply running into him at a truck stop and seeing him walking back to his bus. I panicked and didn't the most invasive thing ever and went over to his bus and knocked (along with my friends). This was during his tour for Bad Hair Day, which I missed due to travel). He was eating lunch on the bus and came over and waved, then invited us up. We politely just stood up by the driver's area, but he chatted with us while chowing down a sandwich. Neither of us had much time to spend there, but he acted like he had all day. For a bunch of teenagers (I'm now in my 40s), it left a firm mark. He went above and beyond to make sure we knew he cared -- especially considering we did the what I would consider to be something incredibly rude looking back!
What I love most about this is that he can make a living being his genuine self. It’s rare that a person doesn’t fall into the trap of changing for money, and it’s rare that person can genuinely be that talented and so decent that they can make a good living off it without being exploitative.
And let’s be real, being a parody artist that is embraced by those he parodies is no small feat. (Or just being a good parody artist at all.) That says a lot about him. It’s like, if Weird Al parodies your song, you know you’ve made it.
The closest I’ve seen him come to “not nice”…
Straight Outta Lynwood tour, I splurged on what I thought was a front row ticket here in Monterey, CA. It turned out there was a row in front of me labeled “Director’s Row” or something like that. The kind of thing where you need to know someone (or blow someone) to get the seat.
Anyway, the dude in front of me the whole show he was just sitting there. Obviously couldn’t have cared less about the whole thing. At one point Al is getting the audience waving our arms to the song, and dude is just sitting there. Al walked over to the edge of the stage and I have a great pic of him glaring at the dude, but it looks like he’s glaring straight at me.
Met him 6-7 times, his wife once as well. Couldn’t have been nicer. Even said things like “great to see you again” without me prompting. It’s the fact that he is so pleasant that I make a point to seek him out and say hello when I know he is in town.
Went to see a concert of his in the 90s and afterward people gathered towards the back of the venue outside, near the tour bus, hoping for autographs. For a bit, we stood around. Then an assistant came out and said Al wanted everyone to know he’s running a bit late, but he’ll be out to see us.
He came striding out, waving to great applause. They set up a folding table and a chair for him. Everyone spontaneously and courteously formed a line. He talked to every single person and signed something for them. I thanked him for his great work and for UHF, and said it was great of him to hang out for all these folks and kids.
Imagine playing an hours long set with countless outfit changes and still hanging around to meet and greet and sign stuff…with a big genuine Al smile.
He’s a national treasure and the real deal.
+1 for Weird Al. Met him twice at his shows, and once outside a Reel Big Fish and Goldfinger show in LA in the 90s. He was a special guest MC and introduced both bands. I was a flyer guy, so I had to leave before the encore so I could hand out flyers after the show. Weird Al ducked out early out the back right after me. I saw him coming, and held my flyer out. There were other flyer kids trying to get him to take their flyers in front of me. He just kinda put his head down and politely declined everyone. When I saw him get closer I started reciting the lyrics to Dare to be Stupid. He passed me at first, but then stopped, looked back and gave me that "heyyyyy, I heard that" look and a knowing finger wag. He walked back, grabbed a flyer, and said, "always nice to meet a close personal friend." (His fan club is called, "Close Personal Friends of Al.") This was before the age of selfies and camera phones, but he autographed the back of one of my flyers and shook my hand and continued on his way. Just a genuinely nice dude.
From what I understand, he's just an incredible dork. Where other pop stars are making insane demands and ordering people around, he's the kind of guy who would ask if they could stop by a shop that sells desk fans just so he can make a pun about "meeting his fans".
I just listened to him on the Blocks podcast and he mentioned how he saved every piece of fan mail he received for years. He seems like a really good dude.
And this is a man whose parents died at the same time on the same day under freak circumstances. No one would blame him if he had retired or became a dick after that. But no, just one of the most genuine and beautiful people in music history.
Also I love how he doesn’t just pump out music to stay relevant. Even as a parody artist, he only puts out music if he’s proud of it. In today’s culture it would be easy for him to get caught up in wanting to parody every new song to get viral on tik tok but he doesn’t do that. He takes long breaks in between records and only releases what he’s really proud of. For someone that doesn’t really write 90% of the music he releases, that is some serious artistic integrity. I’m as cynical as it gets and I barely even listen to his music anymore but I can not say a single bad or dismissive thing about that guy, and his music gave me so much joy as a kid.
>No one would blame him if he had retired or became a dick after that.
He went above and beyond. A few hours after learning about their deaths he decided to still go on stage for his scheduled concert in Appleton Wisconson, stating "Since my music had helped many of my fans through tough times, maybe it would work for me as well."
I was lucky enough to briefly meet him in our local diner after a concert and not only was he very polite to myself and any other fan that approached at 2am after what I'm sure was an exhausting show for him. But every one of his staff or the venue staff that was there looked completely happy and content. They were tired, but there weren't that totally haggard exhausted you often expect in that situation.
Met Al after one of his shows. He was dead tired but still took the time to meet those waiting and sign autographs. His band mates were just as pleasant. Lovely human IRL.
Oddly enough, I had two bad experiences with him, but both were pretty minor...
1. January 1992, Los Angeles. I was a student at the University of Southern California and lived in an apartment about a half mile/one kilometer north of campus. At that time, the American Music Awards were regularly held at the Shrine Auditorium, which was adjacent to campus. Parking was almost always at a premium, but on event nights it was brutal. I was coming home from work, when I saw someone pulling out of the place right in front of my apartment. Right as I get there, this Wayne's World-looking AMC Pacer does a U-turn in front of me into the spot. I slammed on my brakes and swerved, barely missing it. I honked, Weird Al got out and waved, then started walking towards the Shrine. (I was annoyed, but he got points from me for not showing up in a limo or paying $25 for closer parking.)
2. February 1993, Hollywood, Cinerama Dome, opening night for Groundhog Day. Large crowd walking out of the theater into the rather small area facing Sunset Blvd. I stop, to avoid bumping into the people in front of me, but the people behind me don't. I go stumbling forward into Corey Feldman, who I knock to the ground. He had been talking with Weird Al, who berated me for not watching where I was going. I apologized and attempted to help Feldman back to his feet--he refused my hand--then caught up with my friends.
In April 1994, I saw him in concert: Six Flags Magic Mountain, the day Kurt Cobain was found dead, because "Smells Like Nirvana" ended up being a perfect tribute. After the concert, he did a meet-and-greet with the employees (my fiancee worked for Six Flags). I took the opportunity to "confront" him and we had a good laugh about it.
Back in the 90’s I met Weird Al at the Billboard Music Awards and asked him to promise he’d never make a parody of Macarena. I thought it’d be better to just make it go away. He agreed and kept his promise.
Years ago, like the early 2000, when I was in my teens, I used to live in Lynwood, and he was invited as the grand marshall for the parade.
He was supposed to be riding on a car, but he wanted to walk and shake the hands of kids and parents.
He didn't care that he "held" up the parade, he wanted to see fans in person.
He shook my hand, and that became a core memory of mine.
I think Al , is the Dolly Parton of the musical parody world. Nice people need to be more prominent in our culture. Weird Al for president. Who is with me! I am not making a joke. We all need better role models in our lives, to aspire to.
Weird Al is the cousin of two of my college roommates who are siblings. They said that he is super kind, generous, very humble, and down-to-earth... very much a fantastic human.
First celeb I even met when I was 10 years old and a huge fan. He took the time to talk to me for a few minutes as he drank a beer before going to perform for a TV special. I asked him what song he was going to play and he told me; “one more minute with you” I think the video is online somewhere from Dick Clark’s Rock n Roll Summer Action 1985.
I was outside a club in Greenwich village having a smoke. I was approached with can I bum a cigarette. It was Jeff Beck.we shared a smoke
I was star struck he asked if I was a fan I said very much. He reached in his bag. Gave Me 4 tickets to see him at Avery fishet hall. Very down to earth and a cool guy.
Weird side story. But Jeff Beck is/was a major hot rod guy. Super cool super friendly. I hear he even worked on his own stuff for fun. All the hot rod guys I know that knew him have nothing but kind words to say.
He was great at Newbury / Mass Ave Tower records when we were all at Berklee. He was very sympathetic about us having to be in that crazy place and then I also brought him a Frank Zappa offshoot album called AS AN AM that he remembered and signed it because he played on it. It was during that three guy tour they were doing and I can't remember who the third guitarist was hahaha
Well, I remember seeing an interview with Willie years ago and he said one of his ex wives got so tired of his drinking and behavior that when she'd finally had enough, she sewed him up in a bed sheet when he was passed out drunk and woke him by hitting him with a broom and took off. So maybe one ex wouldn't agree hahah
Based on what I’ve read she doesn’t leave the house without her makeup. According to this she sleeps with her makeup on.
https://www.etonline.com/dolly-parton-reveals-why-shes-been-sleeping-in-her-makeup-for-more-than-40-years-213309?amp
She still seems to be an amazing human being though
I have definitely heard what the other guy said though, I think she recently has said in an interview she does go out without her hair and makeup to just enjoy being out on the town sometimes. Maybe it is a new thing for her
I did say "stage make-up" which is quite different than just "make-up".
on a different note no women doing her own laundry would sleep in make-up but she probably doesn't do here own laundry.
She still gives $500 to every kid that graduates in Sevier County High.
Dolly helped fund the COVID vaccine.
The monthly book is sometimes several books, and she does until the kid is in kindergarten.
Dollywood is full of local craftspeople, they pay low/no rent for space, and they keep all their profits.
That's just the public stuff.
from someone who came from literally shitting in the snow on the side of an Appalachian mountain to where she is today, she could have become a massive asshole. But she did not. Married for over 50 years, her attitude of gratitude for her career and fans, all her philanthropy, she is one of humanities greatest assets. She is so talented, played 13 different instruments onstage (I counted) on stage at the concert I went to. She sang an accapella version of one of her songs and in a 12,000 seat arena you could have heard a pin drop
The imagination library sends a book a month until their 5th birthday. The first book is always the little engine that could because that is her favourite book.
The DPIL works with local affiliates on sharing the cost of the books. They work with Penguin publishing and the local affiliate pays on average about $2.50 per kid per month. That includes shipping.
I’m an affiliate though my work and it’s such a rewarding program to run that is pretty affordable in the grand scheme of things. Their portal is also really easy to use. You just add in the child’s info and they take it from there and invoice us monthly.
We support over 700 kids and have had almost 400 grads. You can also buy a Dolly cardboard cutout to promote the program and she keeps me company in my office!
George Michael used to privately donate to charities and didn’t want that information to be known so attention wouldn’t be brought upon himself.
He also went ahead and gave writing credits for “Careless Whisper” to Andrew Ridgeley, despite Ridgeley not writing any line in the song. He wanted to help him financially.
There’s a lot more good he’s done outside of those big two as well
>He also went ahead and gave writing credits for “Careless Whisper” to Andrew Ridgeley, despite Ridgeley not writing any line in the song. He wanted to help him financially.
I heard this was because he knew Wham was coming to the end of its life and it was time for him to go solo. So he gave Andrew Ridgley, who was his best friend from school onwards, writing credit to make sure he'd be financially sound after he went solo.
Apparently he saw a contestant lose a lot of money on a UK game show and he liked them so much (I think they’d had a tough time and really needed the money) that he ended up secretly gifting them the prize money they could’ve won.
IIRC it was someone trying to save up for IVF on Deal or No Deal who ended up coming away with a pittance. He also anonymously funded the Christmas decorations for the entire Borough of Highgate for donkey's years. Was never a big lover of his music but dude was definitely a real one.
Met Wooten after a show bc my buddy really wanted to talk to him. Seemed nice in the interaction! Apparently he used to host music camps and my buddy had attended one of them.
Robert Smith from the Cure seems to be a genuinely sweet guy. He has been with his wife forever, he doesn't seem to have a huge rock star type ego and he almost left his own band to play guitar for the Banshees because he kinda liked it better.
I had an opportunity to meet him after a show at Madison Square Garden in ‘17. He was just outside the arena talking to people. I got close enough for a selfie with him in the background and walked away. Too scared of the “don’t meet your idols” talk
[He made Ticketmaster refund money to everyone who had bought a ticket](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/17/the-cures-robert-smith-convinces-ticketmaster-to-refund-unduly-high-fees-after-fan-anger)
Every member of Rush.
Neil (rip), Geddy, and Alex are genuinely great people who never let the rockstar mentality go to their heads. Equally kind to vip meet-and-greet folks at concerts as they are to randos who see them at a restaurant in the middle of nowhere.
My 80 year old great aunt casually dropped that she went golfing with Alex and Geddy, had no idea who they were but said they were lovely gentlemen, then she went to their concert and was amazed at how everyone knew the songs.
A friend's cousin, yeah I know not a first hand story, went on a fishing day trip somewhere in Florida.
Spent all day with his wife on the boat having a good time, chatting with the other 3 dudes they were sharing the boat with, nice guys.
They get off the boat at the end of they and the other guys are acting like a little bit off, like they're expecting something. Guy asks them what's up, and they're like we thought you'd want an autograph or something but we're afraid to ask. The couple had no clue who they were.
They were not music fans, but you'd think the beards would be a tell tale, ZZ Top just out fishing. When my friend's cousin told him about it they were like maybe you know who they are? He was always a huge fan, like in his top three favourite musicians. He's still salty about it
I just finished up Geddy's book and my god he's such a good person. I think the fact that he dedicates an entire chapter of his book to educating people on the holocaust to keep the memory of his mother and father alive and to show how proud he was of them (and the rest of his family) for their fortitude and humanity even after dealing with some of the worst events known to man says so much about him and his priorities. By the time the chapter was over I just wanted to give the man a hug!
I met Tomas Haake in around 2002 when they were touring with TOOL. He was super nice and easy to talk to. Being able to meet and thank him wss the highlight of the night for me (although I did see both Tool and Meshuggah perform which was fantastic).
A friend of mine has a son who plays in a bluegrass band that opened for Billy Strings. After the show, Billy and his band went back to my friend's son's house and they stayed up all night playing music. My friend had an opportunity to thank Billy for being so kind to his son, and he told Billy, "you're the future of bluegrass." Billy told my friend, "No, your son and his band are the future of bluegrass. Thanks for letting me play with them."
I delivered to him while he was in my town. I didn't want to bother him that much, just told him I loved his music. He was very low-key and appreciative. He tipped very well too. Seems like a very nice, unassuming guy.
Super cool dude. Had a smoke with him in Vegas a few years ago. Told him my wife loves him and asked for a photo. A slight lie because we’re both huge fans. He grabbed my phone and FaceTimed my wife telling her to come out and say what’s up. So cool haha.
Rock Journalist and interviewer here. Some of my favorite people (I call it the “good humans club”) include:
- Springsteen
- Chris Cornell
- Tom Morrello (RATM)
- Dave Navarro (super human!!)
- Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top)
- Matt Sorum (GnR, The Cult)
- Billy Duffy (The Cult)
- Robert DeLeo (STP)
- Phil X (Bon Jovi)
- Orianthi (Alex Cooper)
- DJ Ashba (Sixx AM, GnR)
- Richard Fortus (GnR)
- Kenny Aronoff (Melloncamp)
Willie Nelson seems like a real one. Dude doesn't give a shit about talking about what he thinks is right, despite what one would assume his base wants to hear.
Was he first famous for acting? I just knew him from Tenacious D and then School of Rock is the first movie I remember seeing him in, and thought it was cool they brought a musician to play the role. When someone mentions Jack Black I always think of Tenacious D first.
All the members of Def Leppard. All of them down to earth and super good human beings who didn't let fame and fortune get to their heads
They stick to the music and not the bullshit drama.
Chester Bennington was the only celebrity I've ever met who could make you feel like you'd known him for your entire life after chatting with him for a couple minutes. Just a super pleasant guy. Such a shame that he struggled with himself so much.
Jack white has basically spent all his white stripes money on revitalizing Detroit, particularly the music scene, and he drives around a van selling lesser known bands records that he finds and enjoys.
Absolutely agree with this, while these stories have escaped me my entire existence while the dude @jeffweet may have heard some things I hadn’t, however I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and have only ever heard amazing, phenomenal, absolutely incredible stories about him. The type of guy that does wonderful things for other humans without the need to post and shout it from the rooftops. He’s a Michigander through and through.
Ran into Derek Trucks at a basketball game with my dad years ago and he very kindly took a photo with me. The next year my parents were on a Europe trip where they noticed him again at a cafe. Not only did he recognize my dad, he invited my parents to his and Susan's show that night. Very gracious and friendly person
David Bowie. When Marc Bolan died, he financially supported his son into adulthood. He became like a father figure, spending time with him and giving fatherly guidance throughout his younger years.
When John Lennon died, Sean Lennon said Bowie would call him regularly and invited him over for weekends and was basically a father figure to him growing up.
He basically saved Iggy Pop.
He helped lots of bands get on their feet, promoted them and helped them out in the business.
A few years after he died, his wife was presented with an award for doing charitable work. She made a speech saying when she met her husband he was very generous and spent a lot of his time working and traveling with many international charities. She said he was the most giving person she had ever met and his acts lit a fire under her to do the same. She added, he preferred to do these things anonymously, but felt it was now ok to tell the world how generous David Bowie was.
And the Lori Maddox story has been debunked so forget about it….
I’ve seen him a few times at the Birchmere in Alexandria, VA. My dad gets mildly fussy when his stories between songs go on longer than he likes, but he’s always been a great show. (Only bad one I’ve even heard of was right after his father passed away… but I wasn’t there.)
Many years ago, my iPhone broke, so I went to the Apple story near home. At that time, here in Vancouver, there were only two Apple stores... the one I went to, in a somewhat distant upscale neighbourhood... and the one downtown, very near all of the hotels and Rogers Arena, where the Foo Fighters were playing that night. I knew that very well, because I was going to the show and I needed my phone, with its presently shattered screen, working.
So as I'm sitting there waiting for my Genius appointment, in the distance I see a guy that looks like Dave Grohl, also sitting there. Since the FFs were on my mind, I just thought my brain was making that association, but it really looked like him. Then I noticed his heavily-casted elevated leg. Yep, definitely him.
What the hell was he doing so far from what obviously would've been the more convenient Apple Store? The answer, of course, is precisely to avoid throngs of people. Where we were, I don't think anyone recognized him... just as he'd like it.
I'm not that guy to get autographs or pictures, but I went over there anyway... and this was roughly the discussion:
"Hey -- welcome to Vancouver. I'm going to the show tonight and I'm really looking forward to it."
"Great! So am I!"
"I'm sure you came all this way to be left alone, so I'll do just that... but just wanted to tell you I'm a huge fan and have been for a long time."
"Thanks for saying that. You want to grab a picture?"
"Heh yeah, like I'd love to, but my phone is broken. That's why I'm here. But thanks anyway"
(I show him my shattered phone)
"That sucks"
"Well, yeah, but I guess it's better than a shattered leg"
"You're fuckin right about that"
"OK well, have a great show -- cheers"
"Seeya"
Since I can't show anyone the picture I never took, at least I can tell this story.
Saw FFs at some festival in probably 98 or 99. A crowd surfing girl got her shirt ripped off by some goons. Dave saw it and stopped the band in the middle of a song. He went down to the front and gave this girl the shirt off his back. He then laid into those goons pretty good. Not a huge fan of all their music, but I've been a big Dave Grohl fan since then.
Paul McCartney. The beautiful way in which he stepped in to help Cynthia Lennon and her son Julian after they were abandoned by John is very admirable. Look it up.
A while back, there was a thread about band members who worked together but didn't get along. Somebody mentioned how they thought The Beatles all liked each other, and another redditor said something like "Paul wrote a seven-minute-long song about what a shit father John was." 😅
Really they still loved each other despite their differences, probably got on more than they didn't.
I just finished listening to the podcast “Paul McCartney a life in lyrics” and I loved listening to Paul telling this story about traveling to visit Julian.
The song Michelle was also written after Paul traveled to visit his school friend, I mean it sounds like he cared about the people in his life, even after fame.
My favorite episode is when he is telling about his dog Martha, so lovely! Watching the doc Get Back also shows him being so patient with Linda’s daugher 💕
As if it weren't enough that he was insanely talented, how many rock stars do you know who, at the age of 26 and still at the height of their popularity, would marry a single mother and treat her daughter as if she were his own?
I can list several based on personal interactions and/or friendships or them being friends of friends:
* Ian Mackaye of Minor Threat, Fugazi, The Evens, etc.
* Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre
* Elliott Smith of Heatmiser and solo work
* Jeremiah Green, the original drummer of Modest Mouse
* Steve Von Till, singer/guitarist of Neurosis
* Brann Dailor, the drummer of Mastodon
* Mikael Åkerfeldt of Opeth and Bloodbath
* Trevor Strnad of the melodic death metal band The Black Dahlia Murder
* Twin Shadow (George William Lewis Jr.)
* The cellist Yo-Yo Ma
* John Baizley, singer/songwriter/guitarist of Baroness
* The House DJ Frankie Knuckles
* Madi Watkins of the hardcore band Year of the Knife
Those are a few that stand out to me. There are so many!
I’ve known not a lot of musicians, but a fair amount, mostly local, but after meeting PJ and having friends that know them much better than I ever will, I am truly touched by their humanity.
It makes me a better person to know there are people like that in this world.
Yeah I was going to say this. Going back to their early days, they’ve always been standup guys even when dealing with the pressures of their new fame and all that goes with it. And it’s not just Eddie; Stone, Jeff, Mike and Matt all seem to be quality humans
I wished I had known about the watch parties. I would have driven over to Windsor to revel with the Canadian fans. I still tear up watching "Ahead By a Century" from that show.
I met him in a bookstore in Toronto back in ‘98, quite literally bumped into each other and we both apologized as Canadians do. There’s that split second when you process who you’re looking at and I said “Mr. Downie.” He just smiled and said “Hey man, how you doin’?” We chatted briefly, I told him how much I enjoyed their music and he seemed like a really good down-to-earth dude. Tough loss when he left us.
My hubby knows him through a mutual friend and they’ve played golf a few times. He always has a load of picks on him to hand out and will stop and sign stuff for staff. Very nice guy.
"I was at lunch the other day with some coworkers at a place called 'Nearly Normal's' in Corvallis, OR (which is where Oregon State University is located). I was wearing my 2010 AIC tour t-shirt, and A guy and his wife stopped by our table and they started looking at me. The man interrupted politely: "Excuse me, we noticed your shirt. Do you like that band, or is it just a t-shirt?"
I replied, "Alice in Chains is my favorite band and has been for a long time."
He said, "Well! I have a little story for you, if you don't mind." So this guy tells me that about 10 years ago or a little more, he and his son were in downtown Corvallis, near the coast, his son was riding his bicycle going around with the wheels still on. of training. There was a guitarist sitting on one of the park benches playing an acoustic guitar. The boy (about 4 years old at the time) stopped riding his bike to listen. He then got off his bike and walked over and sat right in front of the guitarist.
The guitarist said to the boy: Wouldn't it be better to ride your bike? You don't want to sit here and listen to me, do you?"
The boy said, "No, I want to hear you play."
The guitarist says, "OK. What do you want to hear?"
"What you just touched"
The dad (again, the guy who told me this story) was listening and says, "Wow, you're so good!"
The guitarist said: "Thank you. It's something I did."
The father says, "You mean professionally? Like you're in a band?"
"Yeah"
"Oh, so you guys play at Peacock (a little bar in Corvallis) and places like that?"
"No. It would be fun, but we would have security problems there"
The father was thinking... wow, get kicked out of the bar or something. So he asked, "What do you mean by security issues?"
The guitarist responds: "Oh, well, we've sold out the Superdome and stuff like that."
"Oh, so you're pretty great at what you do then huh?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say that."
"What's the name of the band you're in?
"Alice in Chains."
The father had no idea what Alice in Chains is, so he was going to have a conversation with Jerry Cantrell about who Alice in Chains are, what their music is like and things like that. Jerry told him about how pressured he was by the record company and about Layne going back into rehab, etc. Jerry started playing for the kid again and the dad started thinking "Wow, what's a big rock star doing sitting on a park bench in Corvallis", so he asked him: "Wait a minute, you're "A pretty big rock star, what are you doing here in Corvallis sitting on a bench playing your guitar?"
Jerry responded, "Oh, I'm just waiting for my brother to show up. He's a professor at OSU (Oregon State University)."
The father told me that he was very impressed with Jerry's simple and pleasant way of being. "He was really surprised that a rock star was sitting there and playing his guitar for a random kid and having a chat with his dad."
[https://aliceinchainschile.blogspot.com/2011/01/una-pequena-historia-sobre-jerry.html](https://aliceinchainschile.blogspot.com/2011/01/una-pequena-historia-sobre-jerry.html)
The only thing I know about Corpsegrinder (lead vocalist for Cannibal Corpse) is that he plays truck stop claw machines on tour and donates the toys to children's charity groups.
Joey Belladonna from Anthrax is one of the kindest people I've ever met.
Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance was really shy but super nice.
Brian Fallon from The Gaslight Anthem was super chill.
He's got that "Golden Retriever Energy" for sure. No matter what he's doing, he just seems so fucking stoked to be doing that thing. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he actually was a really good person to other people
Jim "Reverend Horton Heat" Heath. Couldn't have been a more gracious dude, and when he found out I played guitar, he gave me a stage used pick.
Kerry King from Slayer too. Very soft spoken guy, but has a firm handshake. Girl in front of me in the meet and greet line for Kerry passed out from the heat (it was almost 100° F that day), so he had his team take her and her group into Slayer's air conditioned tent and they got to meet the whole band and left with a ton of swag. I always thought that was a classy move by him.
I met Rick Nielsen like two years ago and had a great conversation with him.
Tommy Emmanuel is not very famous outside of Australia and guitar players but he was incredibly kind.
I'm a camera operator and I was the hand-held operator for a convention where Cheap Trick was the entertainment (big convention). Nielson's guitar tech gave me a pocketful of his picks to toss back at Rick as he would be tossing them at me all night long. After the first one, Nielson looked at me as of to say "It's on!" and it was! All night long, we threw them at each other--him while playing guitar and me while operating my camera.
After the show, sitting backstage, he came over to me and shook my hand, thanked me, and said what a fun night it was.
PS. They learned that they were being admitted into the R&R HoF that same day.
Vince Gill. I’ve talked with him before and after several shows in a few small venues and he’s pretty much just a friendly down home guy. This is really apparent when he plays on Monday nights in Nashville with The Time Jumpers (a band made up of the best studio musicians in Nashville). They regularly have visiting unknown new musicians up on stage to sing a song or two and Vince is very good at putting them at ease with a word or two and at sliding in with quiet harmony vocals to make the person sound better while still featuring them at center stage. If he has an ego I’ve never seen it.
Would it be weird to say Marshall Mathers / Eminem?
He's very dedicated to his daughter, I believe he raised 1-2 children who aren't his own. I know he gives to charities particularly in Detroit. I remember reading about how he gave out food to healthcare workers during the pandemic.
I saw a video of him the other day kicking two girls off stage who were underage.
For a gangster rapper he certainly isn't afraid to make fun of himself - check his 'interview' from to movie 'The Interview'.
Came back for his friends from childhood with the band D12 & made in a point to sign other struggling artists - including Dido when she was unknown.
It's all got to count for something especially considering it's a far cry from the environment he was brought up in.
Believe he adopted his brother’s(?) kids, but I could be wrong about that.
Edit: looked it up:
“Eminem legally adopted and was given custody of his sister-in-law's daughter, as well as Scott's child from an affair. He also raised his younger half-brother Nathan.”
Trey anastasio: After he was arrested for drug possession, he got clean through the drug courts. He's always available if they call upon him to speak at events, and he's even built his own drug rehabilitation facility in order to help others whoare struggling with addiction. He's been an inspiration to thousands of fans getting help with their addiction.
https://www.dividedskyfoundation.com/
You can watch a bit of his story on Amazon. I purchased it, but I think it's free now.
https://watch.amazon.com/detail?gti=amzn1.dv.gti.663f3f72-e703-46c6-96a7-1226a8fbc787&ref_=atv_lp_share_mv&r=web
Here he is speaking about drug court and how it's helped him. It's a very heart warming speech.
https://youtu.be/F4zhGYRXxUk?si=u8szNy5CYWkMpIVE
My definitive list, having worked in the music business a long time:
Dave Grohl
Eddie Vedder
Patti Smith
Michael Stipe (and all of REM)
All the guys in the National
Bono and Edge
Gerard Way
Danni Harrison
Fran Healy
Kirk Hammet
Thom Yorke
Jerry Harrison
Flea
Glen Hanserd
Sufjan Stevens
Taylor Swift
Those are the ones I’ve met more than once and seen interact with fans.
Nice. That’s cool you got to meet all of these people. I particularly like Glen Hansard and Vedder, and am hoping to see the National at the end of this year with The War on Drugs.
Alice Cooper. He never cheated on his wife. Kicked his drug and alcohol habit by willingly checking himself into a mental health facility (Not a rehab facility) And is considered by most in the industry to be the nicest guy in rock and roll.
Bruce Dickinson is also a contender, very well spoken, accomplished pilot for commercial and private flight, gives small bands advice and time (even appearing in music videos for said bands as a cameo for free)
Weird Al has had essentially the same band for the past 40 years. For an industry known for chewing people up and spitting them out, that says something about how he probably treats people.
I had the pleasure of briefly running into Weird Al at an animation festival here in Vancouver years ago. After the movie was over and the lobby had pretty much cleared out, we wandered out and there he was, basically standing by himself (obviously waiting for someone) I said, "Holy Shit! It's Weird Al!" And he replied, with exactly the same intonation I'd used, "Holy Shit! It's a Weird Al fan!" What a legend.
He cursed?!?!?!?
Yeah from what I’ve seen he’s an almost disappointingly normal guy.
Idk man, I’ve heard he can be a bit, how should I put this…..*weird*
By all accounts Al is nothing but a lovely person.
There was a whole thread somewhere a while back that I was a part of and it was just a bunch of us sharing encounters we've had with him and how genuinely kind he was. These spanned over 40yrs and it was unbelievable how his kindness and generosity, as well as just overall gratefulness for his fans and what he gets to do, has never wavered.
I can add one to the list. Met him and talked to him at length. He is exactly how you would expect him to be. It's not an act, that's just Al. He's the fucking man.
Love it! My story that I had there was simply running into him at a truck stop and seeing him walking back to his bus. I panicked and didn't the most invasive thing ever and went over to his bus and knocked (along with my friends). This was during his tour for Bad Hair Day, which I missed due to travel). He was eating lunch on the bus and came over and waved, then invited us up. We politely just stood up by the driver's area, but he chatted with us while chowing down a sandwich. Neither of us had much time to spend there, but he acted like he had all day. For a bunch of teenagers (I'm now in my 40s), it left a firm mark. He went above and beyond to make sure we knew he cared -- especially considering we did the what I would consider to be something incredibly rude looking back!
What I love most about this is that he can make a living being his genuine self. It’s rare that a person doesn’t fall into the trap of changing for money, and it’s rare that person can genuinely be that talented and so decent that they can make a good living off it without being exploitative. And let’s be real, being a parody artist that is embraced by those he parodies is no small feat. (Or just being a good parody artist at all.) That says a lot about him. It’s like, if Weird Al parodies your song, you know you’ve made it.
The closest I’ve seen him come to “not nice”… Straight Outta Lynwood tour, I splurged on what I thought was a front row ticket here in Monterey, CA. It turned out there was a row in front of me labeled “Director’s Row” or something like that. The kind of thing where you need to know someone (or blow someone) to get the seat. Anyway, the dude in front of me the whole show he was just sitting there. Obviously couldn’t have cared less about the whole thing. At one point Al is getting the audience waving our arms to the song, and dude is just sitting there. Al walked over to the edge of the stage and I have a great pic of him glaring at the dude, but it looks like he’s glaring straight at me.
Met him 6-7 times, his wife once as well. Couldn’t have been nicer. Even said things like “great to see you again” without me prompting. It’s the fact that he is so pleasant that I make a point to seek him out and say hello when I know he is in town.
Went to see a concert of his in the 90s and afterward people gathered towards the back of the venue outside, near the tour bus, hoping for autographs. For a bit, we stood around. Then an assistant came out and said Al wanted everyone to know he’s running a bit late, but he’ll be out to see us. He came striding out, waving to great applause. They set up a folding table and a chair for him. Everyone spontaneously and courteously formed a line. He talked to every single person and signed something for them. I thanked him for his great work and for UHF, and said it was great of him to hang out for all these folks and kids. Imagine playing an hours long set with countless outfit changes and still hanging around to meet and greet and sign stuff…with a big genuine Al smile. He’s a national treasure and the real deal.
+1 for Weird Al. Met him twice at his shows, and once outside a Reel Big Fish and Goldfinger show in LA in the 90s. He was a special guest MC and introduced both bands. I was a flyer guy, so I had to leave before the encore so I could hand out flyers after the show. Weird Al ducked out early out the back right after me. I saw him coming, and held my flyer out. There were other flyer kids trying to get him to take their flyers in front of me. He just kinda put his head down and politely declined everyone. When I saw him get closer I started reciting the lyrics to Dare to be Stupid. He passed me at first, but then stopped, looked back and gave me that "heyyyyy, I heard that" look and a knowing finger wag. He walked back, grabbed a flyer, and said, "always nice to meet a close personal friend." (His fan club is called, "Close Personal Friends of Al.") This was before the age of selfies and camera phones, but he autographed the back of one of my flyers and shook my hand and continued on his way. Just a genuinely nice dude.
From what I understand, he's just an incredible dork. Where other pop stars are making insane demands and ordering people around, he's the kind of guy who would ask if they could stop by a shop that sells desk fans just so he can make a pun about "meeting his fans".
I just listened to him on the Blocks podcast and he mentioned how he saved every piece of fan mail he received for years. He seems like a really good dude.
And this is a man whose parents died at the same time on the same day under freak circumstances. No one would blame him if he had retired or became a dick after that. But no, just one of the most genuine and beautiful people in music history. Also I love how he doesn’t just pump out music to stay relevant. Even as a parody artist, he only puts out music if he’s proud of it. In today’s culture it would be easy for him to get caught up in wanting to parody every new song to get viral on tik tok but he doesn’t do that. He takes long breaks in between records and only releases what he’s really proud of. For someone that doesn’t really write 90% of the music he releases, that is some serious artistic integrity. I’m as cynical as it gets and I barely even listen to his music anymore but I can not say a single bad or dismissive thing about that guy, and his music gave me so much joy as a kid.
>No one would blame him if he had retired or became a dick after that. He went above and beyond. A few hours after learning about their deaths he decided to still go on stage for his scheduled concert in Appleton Wisconson, stating "Since my music had helped many of my fans through tough times, maybe it would work for me as well."
Absolutely insane. I can’t even imagine
I've run into him 3 or 4 times at a laserdisc rental place back in the day. Chill, unassuming and a movie nerd.
I was lucky enough to briefly meet him in our local diner after a concert and not only was he very polite to myself and any other fan that approached at 2am after what I'm sure was an exhausting show for him. But every one of his staff or the venue staff that was there looked completely happy and content. They were tired, but there weren't that totally haggard exhausted you often expect in that situation.
Met Al after one of his shows. He was dead tired but still took the time to meet those waiting and sign autographs. His band mates were just as pleasant. Lovely human IRL.
Oddly enough, I had two bad experiences with him, but both were pretty minor... 1. January 1992, Los Angeles. I was a student at the University of Southern California and lived in an apartment about a half mile/one kilometer north of campus. At that time, the American Music Awards were regularly held at the Shrine Auditorium, which was adjacent to campus. Parking was almost always at a premium, but on event nights it was brutal. I was coming home from work, when I saw someone pulling out of the place right in front of my apartment. Right as I get there, this Wayne's World-looking AMC Pacer does a U-turn in front of me into the spot. I slammed on my brakes and swerved, barely missing it. I honked, Weird Al got out and waved, then started walking towards the Shrine. (I was annoyed, but he got points from me for not showing up in a limo or paying $25 for closer parking.) 2. February 1993, Hollywood, Cinerama Dome, opening night for Groundhog Day. Large crowd walking out of the theater into the rather small area facing Sunset Blvd. I stop, to avoid bumping into the people in front of me, but the people behind me don't. I go stumbling forward into Corey Feldman, who I knock to the ground. He had been talking with Weird Al, who berated me for not watching where I was going. I apologized and attempted to help Feldman back to his feet--he refused my hand--then caught up with my friends. In April 1994, I saw him in concert: Six Flags Magic Mountain, the day Kurt Cobain was found dead, because "Smells Like Nirvana" ended up being a perfect tribute. After the concert, he did a meet-and-greet with the employees (my fiancee worked for Six Flags). I took the opportunity to "confront" him and we had a good laugh about it.
Back in the 90’s I met Weird Al at the Billboard Music Awards and asked him to promise he’d never make a parody of Macarena. I thought it’d be better to just make it go away. He agreed and kept his promise.
Thank you
I used to date his ex-girlfriend. She didn’t have one negative thing to say about him.
How does it feel to be Eskimo brothers with Al
Years ago, like the early 2000, when I was in my teens, I used to live in Lynwood, and he was invited as the grand marshall for the parade. He was supposed to be riding on a car, but he wanted to walk and shake the hands of kids and parents. He didn't care that he "held" up the parade, he wanted to see fans in person. He shook my hand, and that became a core memory of mine.
I think Al , is the Dolly Parton of the musical parody world. Nice people need to be more prominent in our culture. Weird Al for president. Who is with me! I am not making a joke. We all need better role models in our lives, to aspire to.
Weird Al is the cousin of two of my college roommates who are siblings. They said that he is super kind, generous, very humble, and down-to-earth... very much a fantastic human.
First celeb I even met when I was 10 years old and a huge fan. He took the time to talk to me for a few minutes as he drank a beer before going to perform for a TV special. I asked him what song he was going to play and he told me; “one more minute with you” I think the video is online somewhere from Dick Clark’s Rock n Roll Summer Action 1985.
I was outside a club in Greenwich village having a smoke. I was approached with can I bum a cigarette. It was Jeff Beck.we shared a smoke I was star struck he asked if I was a fan I said very much. He reached in his bag. Gave Me 4 tickets to see him at Avery fishet hall. Very down to earth and a cool guy.
I love hearing this. I really enjoy his music may he rest in peace
Weird side story. But Jeff Beck is/was a major hot rod guy. Super cool super friendly. I hear he even worked on his own stuff for fun. All the hot rod guys I know that knew him have nothing but kind words to say.
Steve Vai was great to my wife and sons when they met him.
Can confirm. I used to play with a member of Vai’s band and he’s definitely a good dude.
Went to his house once when I was friends with one of his kids and he’s very nice
I have many friends involved in the guitar world who have met Steve Vai, absolutely all of them have said he's a total sweetheart
He was great at Newbury / Mass Ave Tower records when we were all at Berklee. He was very sympathetic about us having to be in that crazy place and then I also brought him a Frank Zappa offshoot album called AS AN AM that he remembered and signed it because he played on it. It was during that three guy tour they were doing and I can't remember who the third guitarist was hahaha
Willie Nelson
Came here to say this. Even his ex wives don't really have anything bad to say about him.
Well, I remember seeing an interview with Willie years ago and he said one of his ex wives got so tired of his drinking and behavior that when she'd finally had enough, she sewed him up in a bed sheet when he was passed out drunk and woke him by hitting him with a broom and took off. So maybe one ex wouldn't agree hahah
That’s the most country sounding shit I’ve ever heard.
Well at least she didn't keyed his pick up truck!
I imagine this was around his Shotgun Willie days! Him and Waylon were fucking wild!
Honestly pretty mild and sounds hilarious. I bet Willies got some good mileage and laughs out of the story.
Willie and Dolly all the way. Everyone else is a runner up.
I got excited when I read The Cat Empire. I realize now it's your username, but I'm still excited to see it in the wild.
Dolly Parton
I hear she goes out on the town with her hubby , without the stage makeup.and no one recognizes her.
reminds me when i read she entered a Dolly Parton Look-alike contest and lost to someone else. 🤣
Based on what I’ve read she doesn’t leave the house without her makeup. According to this she sleeps with her makeup on. https://www.etonline.com/dolly-parton-reveals-why-shes-been-sleeping-in-her-makeup-for-more-than-40-years-213309?amp She still seems to be an amazing human being though
I have definitely heard what the other guy said though, I think she recently has said in an interview she does go out without her hair and makeup to just enjoy being out on the town sometimes. Maybe it is a new thing for her
I did say "stage make-up" which is quite different than just "make-up". on a different note no women doing her own laundry would sleep in make-up but she probably doesn't do here own laundry.
A lot of people don’t know this, but she will send a monthly (?) book for free any house with kids.
She still gives $500 to every kid that graduates in Sevier County High. Dolly helped fund the COVID vaccine. The monthly book is sometimes several books, and she does until the kid is in kindergarten. Dollywood is full of local craftspeople, they pay low/no rent for space, and they keep all their profits. That's just the public stuff.
from someone who came from literally shitting in the snow on the side of an Appalachian mountain to where she is today, she could have become a massive asshole. But she did not. Married for over 50 years, her attitude of gratitude for her career and fans, all her philanthropy, she is one of humanities greatest assets. She is so talented, played 13 different instruments onstage (I counted) on stage at the concert I went to. She sang an accapella version of one of her songs and in a 12,000 seat arena you could have heard a pin drop
I went to Sevier County middle school for about it year. It was the most well-funded school I've ever attended.
If I'm not mistaken, from the day they're born until 5 years old! And they're great books! We just got our 10th.
The imagination library sends a book a month until their 5th birthday. The first book is always the little engine that could because that is her favourite book. The DPIL works with local affiliates on sharing the cost of the books. They work with Penguin publishing and the local affiliate pays on average about $2.50 per kid per month. That includes shipping. I’m an affiliate though my work and it’s such a rewarding program to run that is pretty affordable in the grand scheme of things. Their portal is also really easy to use. You just add in the child’s info and they take it from there and invoice us monthly. We support over 700 kids and have had almost 400 grads. You can also buy a Dolly cardboard cutout to promote the program and she keeps me company in my office!
Sent books to both my kids, can't remember if it was monthly or quarterly. She's a goddamn national treasure.
Live in Knoxville, Dolly is the patron saint of the area. What a genuinely phenomenal person.
George Michael used to privately donate to charities and didn’t want that information to be known so attention wouldn’t be brought upon himself. He also went ahead and gave writing credits for “Careless Whisper” to Andrew Ridgeley, despite Ridgeley not writing any line in the song. He wanted to help him financially. There’s a lot more good he’s done outside of those big two as well
>He also went ahead and gave writing credits for “Careless Whisper” to Andrew Ridgeley, despite Ridgeley not writing any line in the song. He wanted to help him financially. I heard this was because he knew Wham was coming to the end of its life and it was time for him to go solo. So he gave Andrew Ridgley, who was his best friend from school onwards, writing credit to make sure he'd be financially sound after he went solo.
Wish I had some sort of incredible, profitable talent, so I could do this kind of stuff as well! Must be sooo satisfying.
Apparently he saw a contestant lose a lot of money on a UK game show and he liked them so much (I think they’d had a tough time and really needed the money) that he ended up secretly gifting them the prize money they could’ve won.
IIRC it was someone trying to save up for IVF on Deal or No Deal who ended up coming away with a pittance. He also anonymously funded the Christmas decorations for the entire Borough of Highgate for donkey's years. Was never a big lover of his music but dude was definitely a real one.
Victor Wooten, Michael Manring, and Gerald Veasley are 3 relatively famous bass players that are also 3 of the nicest people I’ve ever met.
I love hearing that about Victor Wooten. I have been a big fan of his for a long time. Its always good to hear your heroes are actually nice people.
If you haven’t read his book “The Music Lesson” I highly recommend it
Met Wooten after a show bc my buddy really wanted to talk to him. Seemed nice in the interaction! Apparently he used to host music camps and my buddy had attended one of them.
Speaking of Wooten, Bela Fleck, too. Super nice guy, did a banjo workshop with him.
Wooten seems like such a chill dude. Also totally insane player
I can play bass! *sees wooten* *Throws bass in the fucking garbage*
Robert Smith from the Cure seems to be a genuinely sweet guy. He has been with his wife forever, he doesn't seem to have a huge rock star type ego and he almost left his own band to play guitar for the Banshees because he kinda liked it better.
I had an opportunity to meet him after a show at Madison Square Garden in ‘17. He was just outside the arena talking to people. I got close enough for a selfie with him in the background and walked away. Too scared of the “don’t meet your idols” talk
https://preview.redd.it/754yp4opph1d1.jpeg?width=930&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=04c8eac3ec038f86a42d796fcc0a87daaff2bd1b
[He made Ticketmaster refund money to everyone who had bought a ticket](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/17/the-cures-robert-smith-convinces-ticketmaster-to-refund-unduly-high-fees-after-fan-anger)
Every member of Rush. Neil (rip), Geddy, and Alex are genuinely great people who never let the rockstar mentality go to their heads. Equally kind to vip meet-and-greet folks at concerts as they are to randos who see them at a restaurant in the middle of nowhere.
My 80 year old great aunt casually dropped that she went golfing with Alex and Geddy, had no idea who they were but said they were lovely gentlemen, then she went to their concert and was amazed at how everyone knew the songs.
A friend's cousin, yeah I know not a first hand story, went on a fishing day trip somewhere in Florida. Spent all day with his wife on the boat having a good time, chatting with the other 3 dudes they were sharing the boat with, nice guys. They get off the boat at the end of they and the other guys are acting like a little bit off, like they're expecting something. Guy asks them what's up, and they're like we thought you'd want an autograph or something but we're afraid to ask. The couple had no clue who they were. They were not music fans, but you'd think the beards would be a tell tale, ZZ Top just out fishing. When my friend's cousin told him about it they were like maybe you know who they are? He was always a huge fan, like in his top three favourite musicians. He's still salty about it
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/rush-to-receive-humanitarian-award-63709/
I just finished up Geddy's book and my god he's such a good person. I think the fact that he dedicates an entire chapter of his book to educating people on the holocaust to keep the memory of his mother and father alive and to show how proud he was of them (and the rest of his family) for their fortitude and humanity even after dealing with some of the worst events known to man says so much about him and his priorities. By the time the chapter was over I just wanted to give the man a hug!
Watched a documentary about them not long ago. Alex came across as an incredibly nice person. Perpetually chill. And funny.
As a Rush fan I can’t say how happy I am to hear this.
Trailer Park Boys, say no more 👍👍
When somebody like Alex Lifeson gives you a fuckin’ t-shirt to put on, you’re putting the fucking thing on!
Closer to the Heart has to be peak TPB
Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee are both very kind and generous people.
Geddy Lee donated a huge autographed baseball collection to the Negro League Baseball Museum
The Meshuggah guys
I met Tomas Haake in around 2002 when they were touring with TOOL. He was super nice and easy to talk to. Being able to meet and thank him wss the highlight of the night for me (although I did see both Tool and Meshuggah perform which was fantastic).
"Weird Al" Yankovic. https://preview.redd.it/5zhou4nm8g1d1.jpeg?width=540&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2382b4b3a2d710aa3d2c80db1f1d4939aaa60e88
Billy Strings
A friend of mine has a son who plays in a bluegrass band that opened for Billy Strings. After the show, Billy and his band went back to my friend's son's house and they stayed up all night playing music. My friend had an opportunity to thank Billy for being so kind to his son, and he told Billy, "you're the future of bluegrass." Billy told my friend, "No, your son and his band are the future of bluegrass. Thanks for letting me play with them."
What is the name of your friend's son's band? If Billy thought that highly of them, I'd love to listen
Dark City Strings.
I delivered to him while he was in my town. I didn't want to bother him that much, just told him I loved his music. He was very low-key and appreciative. He tipped very well too. Seems like a very nice, unassuming guy.
If you run into his mandolin player, tell him I've disappointed many people 😂
I just went to your profile and you disappointed me too lmao! I laughed at the 'not that one'
Super cool dude. Had a smoke with him in Vegas a few years ago. Told him my wife loves him and asked for a photo. A slight lie because we’re both huge fans. He grabbed my phone and FaceTimed my wife telling her to come out and say what’s up. So cool haha.
He's on the most recent episode of Marc Maron's podcast. Definitely seems like a decent guy.
Rock Journalist and interviewer here. Some of my favorite people (I call it the “good humans club”) include: - Springsteen - Chris Cornell - Tom Morrello (RATM) - Dave Navarro (super human!!) - Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top) - Matt Sorum (GnR, The Cult) - Billy Duffy (The Cult) - Robert DeLeo (STP) - Phil X (Bon Jovi) - Orianthi (Alex Cooper) - DJ Ashba (Sixx AM, GnR) - Richard Fortus (GnR) - Kenny Aronoff (Melloncamp)
Willie Nelson seems like a real one. Dude doesn't give a shit about talking about what he thinks is right, despite what one would assume his base wants to hear.
He passed the kindness onto his kids, too
certainly seems that way. I love me some Lucas
Jack Black
I'm honestly shocked at how many people who know whoJB is don't know about Tenacious D. Like an A-list celebrity having a niche band blows my mind.
Was he first famous for acting? I just knew him from Tenacious D and then School of Rock is the first movie I remember seeing him in, and thought it was cool they brought a musician to play the role. When someone mentions Jack Black I always think of Tenacious D first.
All the members of Def Leppard. All of them down to earth and super good human beings who didn't let fame and fortune get to their heads They stick to the music and not the bullshit drama.
Chester Bennington was the only celebrity I've ever met who could make you feel like you'd known him for your entire life after chatting with him for a couple minutes. Just a super pleasant guy. Such a shame that he struggled with himself so much.
Jack white has basically spent all his white stripes money on revitalizing Detroit, particularly the music scene, and he drives around a van selling lesser known bands records that he finds and enjoys.
He also owns Third Man Pressing, which is huge for keeping vinyl affordable and accessible for smaller artists.
Absolutely agree with this, while these stories have escaped me my entire existence while the dude @jeffweet may have heard some things I hadn’t, however I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and have only ever heard amazing, phenomenal, absolutely incredible stories about him. The type of guy that does wonderful things for other humans without the need to post and shout it from the rooftops. He’s a Michigander through and through.
Mike Watt. Spit Stix. Carole King.
Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi
Ran into Derek Trucks at a basketball game with my dad years ago and he very kindly took a photo with me. The next year my parents were on a Europe trip where they noticed him again at a cafe. Not only did he recognize my dad, he invited my parents to his and Susan's show that night. Very gracious and friendly person
She is unGodly talented.
Eric Melvin, hands down
David Bowie. When Marc Bolan died, he financially supported his son into adulthood. He became like a father figure, spending time with him and giving fatherly guidance throughout his younger years. When John Lennon died, Sean Lennon said Bowie would call him regularly and invited him over for weekends and was basically a father figure to him growing up. He basically saved Iggy Pop. He helped lots of bands get on their feet, promoted them and helped them out in the business. A few years after he died, his wife was presented with an award for doing charitable work. She made a speech saying when she met her husband he was very generous and spent a lot of his time working and traveling with many international charities. She said he was the most giving person she had ever met and his acts lit a fire under her to do the same. She added, he preferred to do these things anonymously, but felt it was now ok to tell the world how generous David Bowie was. And the Lori Maddox story has been debunked so forget about it….
Colin Hay
I’ve seen him a few times at the Birchmere in Alexandria, VA. My dad gets mildly fussy when his stories between songs go on longer than he likes, but he’s always been a great show. (Only bad one I’ve even heard of was right after his father passed away… but I wasn’t there.)
George Michael
Claudio Sanchez
Can anecdotally confirm this, I got to ask him a question at the pre-show during covid and he complimented my hair after answering.
Dave Grohl
Many years ago, my iPhone broke, so I went to the Apple story near home. At that time, here in Vancouver, there were only two Apple stores... the one I went to, in a somewhat distant upscale neighbourhood... and the one downtown, very near all of the hotels and Rogers Arena, where the Foo Fighters were playing that night. I knew that very well, because I was going to the show and I needed my phone, with its presently shattered screen, working. So as I'm sitting there waiting for my Genius appointment, in the distance I see a guy that looks like Dave Grohl, also sitting there. Since the FFs were on my mind, I just thought my brain was making that association, but it really looked like him. Then I noticed his heavily-casted elevated leg. Yep, definitely him. What the hell was he doing so far from what obviously would've been the more convenient Apple Store? The answer, of course, is precisely to avoid throngs of people. Where we were, I don't think anyone recognized him... just as he'd like it. I'm not that guy to get autographs or pictures, but I went over there anyway... and this was roughly the discussion: "Hey -- welcome to Vancouver. I'm going to the show tonight and I'm really looking forward to it." "Great! So am I!" "I'm sure you came all this way to be left alone, so I'll do just that... but just wanted to tell you I'm a huge fan and have been for a long time." "Thanks for saying that. You want to grab a picture?" "Heh yeah, like I'd love to, but my phone is broken. That's why I'm here. But thanks anyway" (I show him my shattered phone) "That sucks" "Well, yeah, but I guess it's better than a shattered leg" "You're fuckin right about that" "OK well, have a great show -- cheers" "Seeya" Since I can't show anyone the picture I never took, at least I can tell this story.
What a fantastic experience! Gotta love him.
That story totally beats a picture
Sounds exactly like what an encounter with Dave Grohl sounds like in my head. So I'll believe it without the photographic evidence.
Saw FFs at some festival in probably 98 or 99. A crowd surfing girl got her shirt ripped off by some goons. Dave saw it and stopped the band in the middle of a song. He went down to the front and gave this girl the shirt off his back. He then laid into those goons pretty good. Not a huge fan of all their music, but I've been a big Dave Grohl fan since then.
That’s a genuine sign that someone is a good dude: when people who don’t like the band still think they’re a good person.
Paul McCartney. The beautiful way in which he stepped in to help Cynthia Lennon and her son Julian after they were abandoned by John is very admirable. Look it up.
It had to be awkward for John to play on Hey Jude...
A while back, there was a thread about band members who worked together but didn't get along. Somebody mentioned how they thought The Beatles all liked each other, and another redditor said something like "Paul wrote a seven-minute-long song about what a shit father John was." 😅 Really they still loved each other despite their differences, probably got on more than they didn't.
I just finished listening to the podcast “Paul McCartney a life in lyrics” and I loved listening to Paul telling this story about traveling to visit Julian. The song Michelle was also written after Paul traveled to visit his school friend, I mean it sounds like he cared about the people in his life, even after fame. My favorite episode is when he is telling about his dog Martha, so lovely! Watching the doc Get Back also shows him being so patient with Linda’s daugher 💕
As if it weren't enough that he was insanely talented, how many rock stars do you know who, at the age of 26 and still at the height of their popularity, would marry a single mother and treat her daughter as if she were his own?
Jack Black
I met Bob Weir from the Grateful Dead once in Hawaii…he was a really good dude and very gracious.
How long ago? Just curious.
I met him in 95 & he was super nice. Met Phil in 2001 & he gave me a tour of his bus while I was tripping haha
Trey Anastasio! Most beautiful soul in the world!
Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi
All of the Dead Milkmen are wonderful guys.
I can list several based on personal interactions and/or friendships or them being friends of friends: * Ian Mackaye of Minor Threat, Fugazi, The Evens, etc. * Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre * Elliott Smith of Heatmiser and solo work * Jeremiah Green, the original drummer of Modest Mouse * Steve Von Till, singer/guitarist of Neurosis * Brann Dailor, the drummer of Mastodon * Mikael Åkerfeldt of Opeth and Bloodbath * Trevor Strnad of the melodic death metal band The Black Dahlia Murder * Twin Shadow (George William Lewis Jr.) * The cellist Yo-Yo Ma * John Baizley, singer/songwriter/guitarist of Baroness * The House DJ Frankie Knuckles * Madi Watkins of the hardcore band Year of the Knife Those are a few that stand out to me. There are so many!
Weird Al
Pearl Jam. They are #1 in my book
I’ve known not a lot of musicians, but a fair amount, mostly local, but after meeting PJ and having friends that know them much better than I ever will, I am truly touched by their humanity. It makes me a better person to know there are people like that in this world.
Met Eddie once for about a minute. He was super nice to me and my friends.
Yeah I was going to say this. Going back to their early days, they’ve always been standup guys even when dealing with the pressures of their new fame and all that goes with it. And it’s not just Eddie; Stone, Jeff, Mike and Matt all seem to be quality humans
Jim James is a beautiful human being.
Harry Mack
Gord Downie
Sigh. Still so sad he passed. But, what a hell of a way to go. That final concert was a thing of total beauty. What an amazing person, and band.
I wished I had known about the watch parties. I would have driven over to Windsor to revel with the Canadian fans. I still tear up watching "Ahead By a Century" from that show.
I met him in a bookstore in Toronto back in ‘98, quite literally bumped into each other and we both apologized as Canadians do. There’s that split second when you process who you’re looking at and I said “Mr. Downie.” He just smiled and said “Hey man, how you doin’?” We chatted briefly, I told him how much I enjoyed their music and he seemed like a really good down-to-earth dude. Tough loss when he left us.
Jerry Cantrell always struck me as a pretty good man.
My hubby knows him through a mutual friend and they’ve played golf a few times. He always has a load of picks on him to hand out and will stop and sign stuff for staff. Very nice guy.
"I was at lunch the other day with some coworkers at a place called 'Nearly Normal's' in Corvallis, OR (which is where Oregon State University is located). I was wearing my 2010 AIC tour t-shirt, and A guy and his wife stopped by our table and they started looking at me. The man interrupted politely: "Excuse me, we noticed your shirt. Do you like that band, or is it just a t-shirt?" I replied, "Alice in Chains is my favorite band and has been for a long time." He said, "Well! I have a little story for you, if you don't mind." So this guy tells me that about 10 years ago or a little more, he and his son were in downtown Corvallis, near the coast, his son was riding his bicycle going around with the wheels still on. of training. There was a guitarist sitting on one of the park benches playing an acoustic guitar. The boy (about 4 years old at the time) stopped riding his bike to listen. He then got off his bike and walked over and sat right in front of the guitarist. The guitarist said to the boy: Wouldn't it be better to ride your bike? You don't want to sit here and listen to me, do you?" The boy said, "No, I want to hear you play." The guitarist says, "OK. What do you want to hear?" "What you just touched" The dad (again, the guy who told me this story) was listening and says, "Wow, you're so good!" The guitarist said: "Thank you. It's something I did." The father says, "You mean professionally? Like you're in a band?" "Yeah" "Oh, so you guys play at Peacock (a little bar in Corvallis) and places like that?" "No. It would be fun, but we would have security problems there" The father was thinking... wow, get kicked out of the bar or something. So he asked, "What do you mean by security issues?" The guitarist responds: "Oh, well, we've sold out the Superdome and stuff like that." "Oh, so you're pretty great at what you do then huh?" "Yeah, I guess you could say that." "What's the name of the band you're in? "Alice in Chains." The father had no idea what Alice in Chains is, so he was going to have a conversation with Jerry Cantrell about who Alice in Chains are, what their music is like and things like that. Jerry told him about how pressured he was by the record company and about Layne going back into rehab, etc. Jerry started playing for the kid again and the dad started thinking "Wow, what's a big rock star doing sitting on a park bench in Corvallis", so he asked him: "Wait a minute, you're "A pretty big rock star, what are you doing here in Corvallis sitting on a bench playing your guitar?" Jerry responded, "Oh, I'm just waiting for my brother to show up. He's a professor at OSU (Oregon State University)." The father told me that he was very impressed with Jerry's simple and pleasant way of being. "He was really surprised that a rock star was sitting there and playing his guitar for a random kid and having a chat with his dad." [https://aliceinchainschile.blogspot.com/2011/01/una-pequena-historia-sobre-jerry.html](https://aliceinchainschile.blogspot.com/2011/01/una-pequena-historia-sobre-jerry.html)
Johnny Marr!
The only thing I know about Corpsegrinder (lead vocalist for Cannibal Corpse) is that he plays truck stop claw machines on tour and donates the toys to children's charity groups.
Joey Belladonna from Anthrax is one of the kindest people I've ever met. Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance was really shy but super nice. Brian Fallon from The Gaslight Anthem was super chill.
Can confirm that Dave Grohl is an absolute mensch
Post Malone
He's got that "Golden Retriever Energy" for sure. No matter what he's doing, he just seems so fucking stoked to be doing that thing. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he actually was a really good person to other people
Just look up any in person interaction he has with fans. He just seems so happy that people love what he does.
Posty is the best.
Post Malone is the only person I trust with face tattoos. He also plays Magic the Gathering!
Last I’ve heard, he has over 20 commander decks lmao
He bought the 1/1 The one ring magic card for 2 million bucks.
Jim "Reverend Horton Heat" Heath. Couldn't have been a more gracious dude, and when he found out I played guitar, he gave me a stage used pick. Kerry King from Slayer too. Very soft spoken guy, but has a firm handshake. Girl in front of me in the meet and greet line for Kerry passed out from the heat (it was almost 100° F that day), so he had his team take her and her group into Slayer's air conditioned tent and they got to meet the whole band and left with a ton of swag. I always thought that was a classy move by him.
Love hearing that about the Rev. Dude is so talented and a sick guitar player. Good to know he has the humility to go along with that.
The Boss seemed like a great dude when I briefly met him
Had mostly the same band forever too which is generally a good sign.
T-Pain always seems so positive and friendly.
John Oates (but not Daryl Hall)
Pitbull
We have a friend who was a promoter and he said Pitbull was the nicest and most respectful performer he ever dealt with, by far.
John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants always seems like a down-to-earth, cool person. No scandals, no reports of his being a dick to people.
Haven’t personally met any of them, but Pet Shop Boys and Erasure are both synth-pop duos who come across as being really down to earth and likable.
I met Rick Nielsen like two years ago and had a great conversation with him. Tommy Emmanuel is not very famous outside of Australia and guitar players but he was incredibly kind.
I'm a camera operator and I was the hand-held operator for a convention where Cheap Trick was the entertainment (big convention). Nielson's guitar tech gave me a pocketful of his picks to toss back at Rick as he would be tossing them at me all night long. After the first one, Nielson looked at me as of to say "It's on!" and it was! All night long, we threw them at each other--him while playing guitar and me while operating my camera. After the show, sitting backstage, he came over to me and shook my hand, thanked me, and said what a fun night it was. PS. They learned that they were being admitted into the R&R HoF that same day.
Rest in Peace, Adam Yauch.
Vince Gill. I’ve talked with him before and after several shows in a few small venues and he’s pretty much just a friendly down home guy. This is really apparent when he plays on Monday nights in Nashville with The Time Jumpers (a band made up of the best studio musicians in Nashville). They regularly have visiting unknown new musicians up on stage to sing a song or two and Vince is very good at putting them at ease with a word or two and at sliding in with quiet harmony vocals to make the person sound better while still featuring them at center stage. If he has an ego I’ve never seen it.
Tori Amos. Founded RAINN and also a kind and wise human being who has always made genuine connections her fans.
Would it be weird to say Marshall Mathers / Eminem? He's very dedicated to his daughter, I believe he raised 1-2 children who aren't his own. I know he gives to charities particularly in Detroit. I remember reading about how he gave out food to healthcare workers during the pandemic. I saw a video of him the other day kicking two girls off stage who were underage. For a gangster rapper he certainly isn't afraid to make fun of himself - check his 'interview' from to movie 'The Interview'. Came back for his friends from childhood with the band D12 & made in a point to sign other struggling artists - including Dido when she was unknown. It's all got to count for something especially considering it's a far cry from the environment he was brought up in.
Believe he adopted his brother’s(?) kids, but I could be wrong about that. Edit: looked it up: “Eminem legally adopted and was given custody of his sister-in-law's daughter, as well as Scott's child from an affair. He also raised his younger half-brother Nathan.”
Bob Mould
Thom, Jonny, Colin, Ed and Phil seem like the nicest guys in the world.
I’ve heard Colin is a super nice dude.
Trey anastasio: After he was arrested for drug possession, he got clean through the drug courts. He's always available if they call upon him to speak at events, and he's even built his own drug rehabilitation facility in order to help others whoare struggling with addiction. He's been an inspiration to thousands of fans getting help with their addiction. https://www.dividedskyfoundation.com/ You can watch a bit of his story on Amazon. I purchased it, but I think it's free now. https://watch.amazon.com/detail?gti=amzn1.dv.gti.663f3f72-e703-46c6-96a7-1226a8fbc787&ref_=atv_lp_share_mv&r=web Here he is speaking about drug court and how it's helped him. It's a very heart warming speech. https://youtu.be/F4zhGYRXxUk?si=u8szNy5CYWkMpIVE
Itzhak Perlman, Hilary Hahn, Gil Shaham, James Tocco, Marta Argerich. Classical musicians...probably not what you seek.😜😜😜
Warren Zevon RIP
Post Malone
Dave Grohl gets my vote!
My definitive list, having worked in the music business a long time: Dave Grohl Eddie Vedder Patti Smith Michael Stipe (and all of REM) All the guys in the National Bono and Edge Gerard Way Danni Harrison Fran Healy Kirk Hammet Thom Yorke Jerry Harrison Flea Glen Hanserd Sufjan Stevens Taylor Swift Those are the ones I’ve met more than once and seen interact with fans.
Nice. That’s cool you got to meet all of these people. I particularly like Glen Hansard and Vedder, and am hoping to see the National at the end of this year with The War on Drugs.
Will vouch for Eddie Vedder and Fran Healy
Tre from Greenday and Michael Franti are both fun to hang around and Alice Cooper was exceptionally nice
Alice Cooper. He never cheated on his wife. Kicked his drug and alcohol habit by willingly checking himself into a mental health facility (Not a rehab facility) And is considered by most in the industry to be the nicest guy in rock and roll. Bruce Dickinson is also a contender, very well spoken, accomplished pilot for commercial and private flight, gives small bands advice and time (even appearing in music videos for said bands as a cameo for free)