Ian MacKaye on the Power of Punk
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- In this interview, Ian MacKaye-frontman of influential bands Minor Threat and Fugazi-describes punk as the “free space”: where new ideas and creative expressions are welcomed and encouraged. This openness has helped fuel the punk scene in Washington, D.C., for many decades, establishing a nurturing place for young musicians and artists without requiring them to “make it big” in New York City. In fact, he claims punk is more “folk” than contemporary folk music. It’s by, for, and about the people.
A fifth-generation Washingtonian, MacKaye has been releasing local D.C. music with this ethos since 1980 on his record label, Dischord Records.
Camera and interview: Charlie Weber
Editing: Harry Zhu
[Catalog No. CFV11166; © Smithsonian Institution, 2019]
I'm not straight edge, but I fucking love Ian and Minor Threat. Guy just wants to do good in the world and I'm the same way. Minor threat was one of the first hardcore bands I listened to and really shaped my way of viewing the world.
Best thing about him is he doesn’t care that you’re not straight edge.
That's awesome!
@@kennhiser i saw fugazi at a frat house party once. the floor was wet with beer and puke, and not a word was said, no judgement, and not a single fight. it was probably their best performance i'd seen.
Ian used to catch so much crap early on for his personal choices, but i tell you... not only did that that guy essentially give birth to the DIY mindset, he also hand wrote me a letter back every single time i reached out to him.
massive respect.
@Atlas John buh bots
@@atom_gray That’s some awesome insight, cheers for sharing!
I could listen to Ian talk forever. I don’t like worship the guy or anything, he’s just a person but damn he’s so inspiring and I just want to be like him and incorporate his mentality and attitude into my own life.
He is the prototype for many the cool kids today thay dont wanna be jocks and dont wanna be nerds
its hip to be square
Ian can pull it off tho
He's a huge nerd
Ian is a folk legend of NOVA and DC
Minor Threat was the best fkng band. Fugazi were hippies reincarnated. I knew Ian in my youth. Pure Energy.
Fugazi..One of the few if not the only band that i know that were there not for what most bands/artists fall for : fame,money,drugs,etc..They were there for the music and the message,plan and simple..Ian you are an inspiration for a lot of people out there in the world that just wanna play music and leaving good message, not wasting time with BS..Cheers!!
He's a good guy, and he's not wearing white. Thanks for all the great music over the years Ian.
He is a patient boy. He'll wait...
Kia ora hello from aotearoa new zealand. this guy is integrity of the highest order I have nothing but respect for the man screaming at a Wall. I'm extremely grateful and Lucky to have seen FUGAZI here in Aotearoa New Zealand
BUCKET LIST SHIT RIGHT THERE 👍
Good guys don’t wear white
@@sarahhannaford958 no they don't because black boots jeans and tee shirt are always the height of fashion topped off with a Mohawk in my case (blue) at the moment. My dad said the other day for FUCKS sack your 53 years old when are you going to grow up
NEVER IS MY REPLY I'll have a Mohawk until i get a bald patch or they nail the last nail into my coffin lid and bury me 12 feet underground cause deep down I'm not that BAD STINKY OR LOUD
@@sarahhannaford958 only sometimes
Ian for President 2024
Fantastic sentiment. Ian is still so inspirational today and I'm thankful we have the opportunity to hear him speak about stuff like this.
always nailing it, Mr Mac Kaye. My respect.
From Minor Threat to The Evens and everything in between, this dude is an awesome human
Legend 👏👏👏
Marginalised essence fuels poverty.
Inspiration is free.
Thank you for sharing.
I tried to play Anarchy in the U.K. at a folk club in Chichester.. There was considerable misunderstanding...
🤣 Good to know!
He's so amazing
just keeping it real, the way it should b
Ian is such a sweet guy
"it encourages and emboldens me to think that other people are working on projects that are.. good for the world, trying to do something that's not just taking"
Fugazi are different class, that is all anyone needs to know.
Hbd!
Your music is great from Danny no trend
Straight Edge Hindu, vegan,etc he changed the world D.C made punk mean somthing
Didn’t Slayer cover MT?
The value of DC's punk scene was straight edge. Punk is a genre stained by drug abuse, and the SE movement is the exception to that rule. It can be argued that punk ended with Straight Edge hardcore.
Wtf????
Ahhh, who cares.
I say Ian is the 4th spot on the Punk Rock Mount Rushmore.
Henry Rollins best friend.
No Ian, "folk" is what politicians say before lying.
GoGo would be the true folk music of DC. It didn't exist outside of the Metro Area.
That is true! Very good point. I love both gogo and punk, but gogo is *definitely* much more of an intrinsically DC thing! (I live in the area, so it's hard not to know that around here!)
christianman73 I grew up in a Quaker town near Olney/Silver Spring. The first drumbeat everyone in band class learned was the GoGo beat. Every talent show had one or two bands playing Drop The Bomb etc.Down the Street from my house was where the band No Trend rehearsed.
@@criops Hey, you grew up near my stomping grounds! :-) As long as I've lived here, though, I have to admit that I never knew the *GoGo beat* had reached into Quaker towns! That is beautiful! What a sharing of cultures-- I love it!
christianman73 Sandy Spring was one of the first free black settlements above the Mason/Dixon line., so unbeknownst to me, I was going to school w/the decedents of Maryland slaves. It was a straight shot down New Hampshire Ave. to DC, so everything, GoGo, Love Boat & crack was available. I wish I had known to check out Trouble Funk, Minor Threat & The Big Boys when they would play DC together in the early 80’s.
Omg, what a conversation to get to read. I feel thankful just to have heard this! ❤
Hardcore Fam
GOT OLD, SOLD OUT, Peace though. The best band that ever existed, and perhaps even better than Wagner!
lol he is nowhere near old
Don’t stand in line
1
Dude is one of the best punk singers of all time imo
The man's an absolute legend
don’t forget how interesting he is on guitar, came up with really cool parts in fugazi
I agree with you!
Mimmo - The Random -
he definitely is
Also an awesome guitar player. Killer “rhythm” guitar style, if you wanna call it that.
damn, Ian aging pretty well, almost 60 and looks like he could be 40
No cigarettes, no drugs, no alcohol and having a strong personality.
@Seth Belfort It does lead too to cardiovascular problems which might show up as "aging'
He was 50 here. 2013
Straight edge bro
@@nietzschesmustache9483 dude i havent tasted meat in 10 years but what ur saying is just wrong. meat is the best source of fats and protein in the world, but problem is that today meat is mass produced and animals live (if you can call that living) unhealthy, so their meat is bad quality.
When he started talking about "you have to move to New York" it reminded me of him screaming NEW YORK SUUUUCKS on Fear's SNL performance, what a guy, huge fan
Fear?
@@michaelmcdonald8452 Yes, the hardcore punk band, Fear. They played on Saturday Night Live in the early '80s, and it was great! If you don't know this band, you should seriously look into them.
The weakness of punk, is punkers hating on each other, judging who’s more punk and who’s a poser punk. That is the weakness of punk, and what is killing Rock, Metal, and Punk.
sounds like something a poser would say
@@jgp6574 your comment sounds like something a poser would actually say and the reason we're losing audiences fuck off poser.
im here for the comments
@@sidplague4777 hi, im satire. have we met?
Minor Threat, Stiff Little Fingers and Bob Marley and the Wailers are the three most inspirational bands I have ever seen. Seeing them live could change your life, and always for the better.
I just saw this guy for the first time in an interview where he looked about 19 or 20 talking about these very same things. Some people truly stand by their values and this man is one of them. 🤘
❤
What a legend, his voice was so raw and its so hard to find that these days. Phil Anselmo was simillar in a way
lol fuck Phil
maybe, but Ian;s range is 2 notes (I'm not complaining), and Phil's, at his peak, was like 200 notes, lol.
Except, of course, Anselmo is a white supremacist piece of shit.
@@johnbeers5527 I dont know whether he is or not, but im not judging his character either way, his voice was awesome
Phil's talking voice sounds like a God damn drop b riff nowadays
I saw him play, the Repeater tour for $5 a head in Tampa,
Me and my friends asked him to sing some Minor Threat songs,
He got Pissed 🤣
He got mad? That makes me kinda sad
@@quintonneal2881 He would probably look back and laugh..
Danzig used to do the same shit,
Misfit started touring before the pandemic 🤣🤣
Me too...$5..Mississippi Nights...St.Louis MO...bought the tape and wore it out...
lol
@@quintonneal2881 why does that make you sad? he hated what the hardcore scene became.
I think I have something in common with Ian MacKaye: loss of hair, some belly and a strict preference for shorts
Dude lives by the merit of his own ethics and it shows. Mad respect to you Ian! STRAIGHT EDGE! XXX!
So many interviews have been done in that corner of his house, that table should be in the Smithsonian one day.
Love it! In fact, I'm pretty that table and the Smithsonian are already going steady 😉
How does this guy simultaneously look 19 and 60 at the same time.
The fact that this video lasts 4:20 💀
The free space. I like that idea.
I love the fact this video is 4:20!!!!! I got a bent edge!!!
Everything this man does, I will support.
@Seth Belfort Yep. So... you're a moron?
@Seth Belfort Thats a zinger of a response. You're a genius at this.
This is hilarious
Antisuyu agreed, maybe he was making an ‘Out of Step’ joke that went over my head?
lmao I can't believe you made a video on the creator of straight edge and had it be 4:20 long
Too perfect🤣
It was 4:19 though ;)
I've always thought of Husker Du's Divide and Conquer as an absolute folk song. Ian's observations and questions are spot on and indisputable. Just like d Boon said ~ Punk is whatever we made it to be.
D Boon❤
He realy nailed it.
For me, everything what fucked me up.. teachers, parents, government etc etc made me a punk before i even know some music and that´s why I never defined myselfe through a music scene.
Punk for me always was and is a selfereflection of your problems and dealing with it through music
This video is 4 minutes and 20 seconds long.
Awesome. Regarding the folk reference, I’ve often thought of Dylan, Cash, Woody Guthrie, some of the Jazz & Blues greats, & many more, as “Punk” expression. It’s always been around, it always will be...thankfully, saved my life!
Phil Ochs
Ian sheds a beautiful light, here, on the definition of both folk and punk. ❤
God damn right... I always thought and felt that honest Punk rock was similar to the genesis of folk. Music by the everyday people, for the everyday people, about the everyday people. But like everything else big business is going to ca$h in....which they did. Then the posers came to the shows and ruined everything, with violence, egos, and macho b.s.... then the "cult" and the narrow minded puritans that ruined Punk with their silly rules and regulations on who is, and isn't Punk. To the extent that it is an elitist club....
Fun to read, your comment. I hope you do more, if you're not already. 👍
Lol he straight edge but this video is 4:20 long
Mike Hunt nice try 4:19
@@SonikJesus th-cam.com/video/14L9zvjVRmA/w-d-xo.html at least he is
Were just a Minor threat!!!
what a badass
So we were told "Well then you can't really be punks." Which is such a terrible thing to tell a kid. "You can't be a punk." ....lol....Ian is the best. He surely made this world a better place.
Dischord Recs saved my life
a hero to me really; MacKaye and even Ginn influenced my world. then you could say i was out of step, but i wouldn't be where i am today without this driving influence in my head.
he's right it's all folk
I’ll never forget seeing Fugazi back in 82, incredible band
wait, huh?
Think you meant 92 there bud lol
Yeah, you most definitely did not see Fugazi in 1982.
"They should sip. They should guzzle." Well-said. Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music/Sacred & Secular
I do hope there will be a reunion of fugazi at least 1 last time one day
Now, more than ever, you can make music and distribute freely.
@@enitriablack th-cam.com/video/14L9zvjVRmA/w-d-xo.html just like how he describe it here
Oops but not now!
This guy cant be anymore wholesome.
Wotta ledge!
Very lucky to see ian with FUGAZI 'in on the kill taker' tour 1994 Canberra ACU Australia, Shellac opened for them,
i drove up 3 hours for that show-- EFFIN AWESOME!!
With Shellac nonetheless, awesome! ❤
This dude was founder of Straight Edge gangs.
Thanks for sharing. Being a musician and label owner, Ian MacKaye is inspiration for me. Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music/Sacred & Secular
Nice! ❤
one of the best frontman who changed the fkn crazy world
@ArzufBKZ He changed punk, popularized Straight Edge and heavily influenced early emo. He’s an absolute legend!
lmao how did punk change the wurld besides gentrifying everything and makung edgier music for multinational advertisements..
@@WizEL you are 100% wrong
@@WizEL th-cam.com/video/14L9zvjVRmA/w-d-xo.html this is his definition of punk
@@keranssdecontrol th-cam.com/video/14L9zvjVRmA/w-d-xo.html this is his explanation of punk
Lord, this is making me feel old.
Lost respect! Last Fugazi show I went to he came out and said no dancing and breaking heads like these guys want to do. Whhhjhaah. We left after the second song. Maybe he only lets people dance at the milk bar. “wHAT HAPPENED TO YOU!!!” YOUR NOT THE SAME!!!
i bet there's more to your story
i was thinkin the same@@gives_bad_advice
An American icon
Hey Ian I'm trying to do a short film about minor threat, on youtube. about 5-10 minutes long. Minor threat has always been my top 10 favorite bands of all time . Fucking hit me up because I wanna tell you're guys story in any way I can beyond what wikepidia says. I'm sure this will go no where at all but it's worth a fucking shot.
it's too bad that Ian refuses to have a reunion with Minor Threat.
Why would he embarrasses himself?
A legend and icon of a man ❤
STILL💕 I love u dude, im an old lady lovin my Punk music and u r the BOMB !!!!!!💕
The Starland Vocal Band were from the DC-area in the 1970s.
But it's not like any punk bands were going to try to follow in their footsteps by writing songs for John Denver....
This man in a genius.
That looks like the same bracelet he was wearing in that famous photo of minor threat on the porch in 1981. 😮
Inspirador! 💖🎶
When bullshit rules the day, simply speaking truth is rebellion.
Punk was always reverberation. That's what Ian Mackaye tried to do. It worked too.
i think i love this guy
Why would anyone give this a thumbs down? There is a lot of sense spoken here! F*£KEN Brilliant.
he seems so sweet and nice it’s
so contrasting to how he sounds in his music
There are interviews where he kind of addresses that. He has really worthwhile thoughts on the subject. 👍
Anyone can be Punk there is no criteria anyone who tells you can't tell them to find a well and jump in it. If actually listen to someone who says you can't be Punk for whatever reason that would be what disqualifies you.
i would think a lot is not punk
The way I think if punk is the notion that you are the author of your own life. Each of us has a pen. You don't steal someone else's pen, you don't try to author someone else's life. Your comment lines up with the way I see it.
I love Ian MacKaye! The Mesiahs!
You have heart, ty
Black sheep
Is it just me or does Ian have a lowkey Scottish accent?
Since his last name Is MacKaye I suppose it's normal
He’s a little backwards in my book. The “folk artist” and yes he is one of the greats... has been a product of their geography and regionality. Once those things become conscious the artist decides to become fixed into the capitalist hegemony and serve as a marketing wing for its acceptance... or to wither away or... to try to write a song as good as bluegrass... the best ones will listen to duke Ellington and realize how truly fucking terrible this country can treat and will treat artists that challenge that hegemony in a real way
I think he's talking about folk as it goes back through the centuries. Actual folk music, outside of whatever systems are in place in whatever country at whatever time. I'm not totally sure, but I'm pretty sure that's what he's talking about.
@@MicahScottPnD hard core is a collective bro down
Man he had some energy in his music that's what drew me to it.
nice
the master has spoken
Punk rock is mostly mindless racket that gives people an outlet to Express their puerile angst and anger at mommy and daddy for not understanding their tempests in a teapot. That said, Ian Mackaye and Mike Watt and the like tapped into something very real, embracing do-it-yourself music and art and making use of it as a form of expression no matter how unpleasant to the ear rather than just being consumers of music. Its only redeeming quality really. As the musicians became more proficient they largely abandoned the genre with MacKaye being a case in point. Minor Threat is pure unadulterated mindless racket while Fugazi had some semblance to actual music. At least the folk and blues musicians took the time and practice to learn to play their instruments.
How old are you ?
How old were you when Hardcore was at its height ?
@@Ritff666l-e9e Over the hill, over 50. The do it yourself aspect of punk rock is great, don't get me wrong. I respect people like Mike Watt even though most of the music sounds like discordant racket to these old ears, these days.
@@Ritff666l-e9e I think most people who played it will agree that musically speaking, with some notable exceptions, a lot of it was awful. The independent nature of it, the keeping the price of shows affordable, and all that was great, but the themes of the music were in many cases idiotic and reflected the "angst" of spoiled middleclass kids thumbing their nose at the system in the most superficial and destructive ways. I was a teenager basically at the peak of the hardcore scene and listened to it myself back then along with a lot of other stuff.
Fugazi nie grało punka tylko hardcoe albo posthardcore
No, doing whatever you want is not punk, if you want to be a classical pianist, that does not make you punk. If so, then "punk" becomes meaningless. Not buying it, even from a sacred priest.
Nobody can definitively say what punk is. It's whatever to you whatever you say and at the same time whatever to another; whatever they say. And then it also isn't. Got it? Up The Punx!
And... life (thus punk) is empty and meaningless. However, fret not; for it's empty and meaningless that it's empty and meaningless. With that you can now Be free to do what you want and to call it as you will. Or not. Either way, all that's left is for you to intentionally Being Happy and Lovingly Grateful. (And to fully love and perhaps express yourself by maybe starting up a punk band, with or without a classical pianist. (Mozart is definitely punk in my book.) [This is SouthSideRich; I do not speak for the collective PRC although that's what TH-cam got me under.]
So is Punk... Freedom? and/or a product of our civilization's Third Wave (Information Age)? (Love You All!)
They said if you're from DC you can't be a punk, heh never heard that. But I'm from NJ and even though I was in my teens when CBGB was going on the 1st time I went was with my mom. Then I got into the scene more in 1990, so what do I know. My friend was in the NJ Barmy Army and said they went to DC to fight and wore belts with concealed knives.
This guy planted the Straight Edge seed in my head, forget to water and give sunshine occasionally, growing slowly