Alice Cooper on Musicians Who Tell Others How to Vote: ‘That’s an Abuse of Power’

Rock star Alice Cooper may be known for his distinctive look and colorful personality — but he’s certainly not known for espousing political views.

The 70-year-old rocker, in fact, despises mixing entertainment and politics and made this clear in a recent interview, ripping fellow musicians who do it.

“When musicians are telling people who to vote for, I think that’s an abuse of power,” he said. “You’re telling your fans not to think for themselves, just to think like you. Rock ‘n roll is about freedom — and that’s not freedom.”

Cooper’s attitude about the political realm can be contrasted with that of countless other artists — who use the stage to share their leftist talking points.

Rapper Drake, for example — holding nothing back — called the president of the United States a “f***ing idiot” at a concert in Brooklyn in late August.

And at a concert in Los Angeles in early November, the musician Moby promised to move to Canada if Democrats did not win the 2018 midterm elections, or if Donald Trump is re-elected in 2020.

Plus, rapper Waka Flocka Flame took a fan’s Trump basketball jersey and wiped his bare rear end with it on stage at an Atlanta concert just days before Trump was inaugurated.

Cooper said he wants his shows to be an escape from the political realm.

“I want my shows to take you as far away as possible from politics,” he said. “It’s supposed to be an escape from the world we’re living in. And you know the next president is going to be worse than Trump, right?”

It is unclear exactly who Cooper supports politically.

He has never given any hints one way or another of how he votes in elections.

“I’m not political at all, but I know Donald and I know he’s a doer, he’s not a sayer — he’s a doer.”

He did speak candidly, however, of President Trump in 2015, from his own personal experience of knowing him, as the two have golfed together before.

“The thing I think about Donald Trump, and I’m not political at all, but I know Donald and I know he’s a doer, he’s not a sayer — he’s a doer,” he said at the time. “I think that’s what the American public are looking at. The American public always votes with their wallets. They’re looking at a guy and going, ‘Why don’t we put a billionaire in there that knows how to run a business?’ Because America is basically a corporation, and that’s what they’re thinking right now. They don’t want some vanilla politician in there anymore doing business for us that’s milquetoast,” he added.

“They want a guy that is going to do something.”

Tom Joyce is a freelance writer from the South Shore of Massachusetts. He covers sports, pop culture, and politics and has contributed to The Federalist, Newsday, and other outlets.