Rob Halford Hasn’t ‘Found the Moment’ to Curse in a Judas Priest Song Yet
Judas Priest singer Rob Halford hasn’t identified a reason to utter an expletive in one of his songs with the metal band. But that doesn’t mean he couldn’t curse on a Priest track in the future, should the case call for it, as the “Metal God” suggested in an interview this week.
When asked why he’s never used any curse words with Judas Priest during a June 21 podcast chat with Dr. Dot, Halford, in his usual informative and friendly tone, explained the basics of why he abstains from profanity in the “Breaking the Law” rockers’ tunes. He also offered a defense of those who do curse in their songs while speaking out against censorship in art overall.
Watch the full interview with the Judas Priest frontman down toward the bottom of this post.
Granted, Halford has employed some light swearing in his musical work outside of Priest, and he freely admits to using vulgarities in his personal life. However, so far, it seems explicit profanity is just something that doesn’t fit into the grand scope of Judas Priest.
“I love to swear, but I use it in a fun way,” Halford said, as reported by Blabbermouth. “I use it in an expressive way — getting your emotions out. But I don’t really think that it has much of a place in our world, in Priest. I mean, I see and hear it a lot in certain types of music and, hey, that’s your thing; it’s your choice.”
The singer digressed, “Music and all art should not be censored. Once you start censoring art, it multiplies and it becomes a very dangerous thing to do. Again, it’s all about choice. If you don’t like something, don’t listen to it. If it’s something on the TV that’s making you angry, change the channel. If [there’s] something that makes you angry on social media, go somewhere else. But for me to use explicit language in a Priest song, I don’t think I’ve found the moment yet.”
Still, Halford has many “friends in metal that utilize the power of those words,” he added. “If that’s the word that really emphasizes a part of your message, then, by all means, you should use it.”
In other Halford news, earlier this month, the musician was named an official Kentucky Colonel. Plus, Priest have been working on some “very potent” new music, Halford recently shared, and he also has enough bluesy solo material ready to record his debut blues album.