Roger Waters has a few things to say about today’s music stars. At 78, the iconic rocker and former Pink Floyd star shows no signs of slowing down — or biting his tongue. In a new interview, Waters said that while he’s not intentionally bashing today’s music scene, he believes he’s “much, much, much more important” than Canadian stars like the Weeknd and Drake. The conversation started when Waters asked why none of the newspapers in Toronto had sent a critic to cover his show there. His publicist told him his show was scheduled for the same afternoon as the Weeknd’s show in the city, which ended up being canceled. “I’m not trying to make a personal attack. I’m just saying I thought it was weird. And, by the way, with all due respect to the Weeknd or Drake or any of them, I’m much, much, much more important than any of them will ever be, the billions of streams they have,” Waters told the Globe and Mail. Waters emphasized that he was scheduled to perform two nights in a row and that the content of his work is more reflective of what is currently happening in the world. “Things are happening here that are fundamentally important to all of our lives,” he added. The “Wish You Were Here” co-writer went on to clarify that he’s not particularly familiar with his fellow musicians because he doesn’t actually spend time listening to music. “I have no idea what or who the Weeknd is, because I don’t listen to much music. People told me he’s big. Well, good luck to him. I have nothing against him,” he continued. Waters also responded to complaints from concertgoers who said his show was not “upbeat.” “I don’t know who you are, but thank you for noticing that it wasn’t just an old hits party,” Waters said, referring to some anonymous scenes that rose to fame at the same time as Pink. Floyd. “I don’t go to those kinds of shows because I don’t like them. The old bands come out and entertain their hits year after year.” The singer-songwriter, who shares in the interview that his “natural instinct” is to “tell the truth,” doesn’t mince words when it comes to his musical peers. He has previously spoken out against Radiohead singers Nick Cave and Thom Yorke for performing in Israel. Waters also attacked then-presidential candidate Donald Trump during his 2016 Coachella set.
