Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong has referenced his infamous 2012 meltdown in his return to the iHeartRadio Festival – watch below.
During their appearance at the event 14 years ago, the frontman embarked on an expletive-laden rant after the band was forced to cut their set 20 minutes short. Learning they only had one minute left, he yelled: “Oh fuck this shit. I’m gonna play a fucking new song. Fuck this shit. Give me a fucking break. One minute left. You’re gonna give me one fucking minute?”
He went on to say he had “been around since 19-fucking-88″ and he was “not fucking Justin Bieber”, before smashing his guitar and ending with: “One minute. God fucking love you all. We’ll be back.”
Last week (January 17), the band returned to the festival in Inglewood, California, and as they played their regular set closer ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’, Armstrong made a sly reference to the rant.
Interrupting the song, he jokingly starting counting down as if they were about to be cut off. “Five, four, three, two, one, zero…Good night,” he said, smiling knowingly at the audience.
Just two days after the 2012 meltdown, Armstrong checked himself into a rehab clinic. “Billie Joe is seeking treatment for substance abuse,” a band statement read at the time. “We would like everyone to know that our set was not cut short by Clear Channel and to apologise to those we offended at the iHeartRadio Festival in Las Vegas.”
The band released their ninth album ‘iUno!’ a month later, but they cancelled most of their promotional activity for the release, with bassist Mike Dirnt saying they “had to put the life of our friend in front of everything”. He also explained that there “were signs of things hitting the fan” in the run up to the incident, adding that they “hadn’t slept in forever”.
Armstrong later reflected on the events, saying in 2016: “The thing about someone who’s losing their mind is that they don’t know they’re losing their mind. I thought my life was completely normal. And it wasn’t. I was on drugs! And people aren’t acting rationally when they’re on drugs. So I had to take care of myself. I had to kick that, and I did. Then we took a long break which was totally necessary.”
In 2024, he said his drinking problems stemmed from “massive stage fright”, explaining: “It’s the anticipation of all day going on and getting ready to go on stage at a stadium or something”.
In other news, Armstrong recently released a faithful cover of David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’, recorded alongside his son Jakob.
Green Day are also set to play the Super Bowl opening ceremony in their Bay Area home next month.
The band shared the trailer for their new road trip comedy film New Years Rev in September. It sees a band named the Analog Dogs, played by Mason Thames, Kylr Coffman, and Ryan Foust, set out to drive from Kansas to California to meet their heroes.
Inspired by their early touring days, the film follows three friends who embark on a road trip in the mistaken belief that they have secured a Green Day support slot at a New Year’s Eve show. It received its world premiere in Toronto on September 12.