Just because you're the world's richest man, it doesn't mean you're above ridicule. Elon Musk has found this out, as rock band Green Day openly mocked the tech mogul by changing the lyrics to their most iconic song while performing in Johannesburg.
Elon Musk might have the ear of the President thanks to his self-appointed title of 'First Buddy' to Donald Trump, but he continues to cause waves in the music scene. Ex-partner Grimes has had to speak out about him numerous times in the past few weeks, he controversially seemed to compare Taylor Swift to Hitler, and now, Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong has made sure the world knows exactly how he feels about the Tesla, SpaceX, and X CEO.
Musk himself was born in South Africa's Pretoria, but performing in Johannesburg, Armstrong made an act of defiance when he changed the words to "American Idiot" in front of a roaring crowd.
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Instead of singing "I'm not a part of the redneck agenda," Armstrong sang "I'm not a part of the Elon agenda."
The timing was ironic considering Green Day did this on January 19, just one day before Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States and Musk hit the headlines for a variety of reasons. As well as viewers being drawn to him at the actual inauguration, Musk then shocked millions when he performed a controversial gesture afterward. Although Musk has denied he pulled off a Nazi salute at the inauguration celebrations, he's faced a barrage of allegations from celebrities, politicians, and Tesla owners alike.
Neither Armstrong nor Musk have acknowledged the lyric change, but the Green Day frontman has shared footage of the band on tour since he mocked the billionaire to thousands.
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Posting on Instagram and speaking to the camera, Armstrong said: "Hello Johannesburg, South Africa. We had an amazing time. Thank you for an amazing show, it's our first time here and we're on our way to Cape Town right now."
This could become a recurring theme, as while performing in Cape Town, Armstrong sang the same Musk edit of "American Idiot".
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Footage of the revamped "American Idiot" is online, with fans loving the diss but warning there could be repercussions.
One fan cheered: "Elon gonna be pissed and it will be fantastic."
Another added, "Can’t wait for Elon to throw a hissy fit so I can laugh," and a third said, "The f your feelings crowd is gonna have an f load of feelings about this one."
Musk's supporters were also quick to run to the comments, with one concluding: "How will @elonmusk ever move forward with a line like that? He will surely perish. A man worth $75,000,000 mentioned him in a song. The rebellious nature of Billie Joe was shining through by saying “Elon” onstage. 😒"
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Musk has previously spoken out about the band in 2024. This came about when Armstrong referenced Trump's 'Make America Great Again' motto and sang: "I'm not a part of the MAGA agenda." A clearly vexed Musk posted on X, writing: "Green Day goes from raging against the machine to milquetoastedly [sic] raging for it."
Never one to stay quiet, it seems that Armstrong was spurred on by this jibe to respond to Musk in a very different kind of way.