Kings of Leon drummer Nathan Followill issued an angry Twitter post today (Jan. 26) directed at “Glee” co-creator Ryan Murphy, in response to his latest comments about the band’s decision not to license its music to the hit Fox show.
“Dear Ryan Murphy, let it go,” Followill wrote. “See a therapist, get a manicure, buy a new bra. Zip your lip and focus on educating 7yr olds how to say f—.” About an hour later, Followill wrote another Twitter post apologizing to “anyone that misconstrued my comments as homophobic or misogynistic,” although he kept his original tweet against Murphy intact.
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Murphy quickly replied to Followill’s comment in a statement to Perez Hilton this afternoon, saying, “Wow. That’s a homophobe badly in need of some education. I’m all for manicures, don’t wear a bra. Would guess most gay dudes don’t. But it’s telling that Nathan can reduce a group of people to a mean-spirited cliché, in a time where young gay men are killing themselves all over the country because of hatred like this.”
The latest spat between Kings of Leon and “Glee” is likely due to Murphy’s comments in The Hollywood Reporter’s new cover story, where he declares, “F— you, Kings of Leon,” and explains why he sees the Tennessee rock band’s decision to reject the show’s request to use its music as an attack on arts education.
“They’re self-centered assholes, and they missed the big picture,” says Murphy. “They missed that a 7-year-old kid can see someone close to their age singing a Kings of Leon song, which will maybe make them want to join a glee club or pick up a musical instrument.”
Meanwhile, Kings of Leon singer Caleb Followill offered a more even-handed response to Murphy’s comments in the article. “This whole ‘Glee’ thing is a shock to us,” says Followill. “It’s gotten out of hand. At the time of the request, we hadn’t even seen the show. It came at the end of that record cycle, and we were over promoting [“Use Somebody”]. This was never meant as a slap in the face to ‘Glee’ or to music education or to fans of the show. We’re not sure where the anger is coming from.”
Former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash also turned down the “Glee” licensing request and described the show as “worse than ‘Grease,’ and ‘Grease’ is bad enough.” Murphy responded by saying that people like Slash “who make those comments, their careers are over; they’re uneducated and quite stupid.” Artists like Britney Spears, Madonna and Journey are among the many to have their music featured on the show, while Stevie Nicks and Jennifer Lopez have recently approached Murphy about guest starring on “Glee.”
While “Glee” will take on Michael Jackson‘s “Thriller” in its post-Super Bowl episode on Feb. 6, Kings of Leon will take the stage at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival as the headliners on April 15. For more on “Glee,” including Murphy’s recent sit-down with Simon Cowell, read The Hollywood Reporter’s cover story on the show.