Dwight Yoakam is speaking out about the Marilyn Manson stunt in which he aimed a fake gun at concertgoers.
While passing through LAX on Monday, the country singer explained that he thought Manson’s actions came at an “inappropriate moment.”
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“I don’t think I would use that theatrical element as a way to get a point across, especially now. Every individual performer does what they do based on their own judgment. I’m sure he thought it was something that would provoke thought, but it probably is an inappropriate moment. I wouldn’t do it, but that’s me,” Yoakam told TMZ.
During a concert in San Bernadino, Manson brought an assault rifle prop with a microphone attached to it on stage. The prop resulted in major backlash for the rocker as the city was the scene of a 2015 mass shooting.
Yoakam continued by mentioning that even though he would not have used the prop gun, it is fair game in a nation that is as free as the US.
“Look, I think we still live in the safest country in the world. Unfortunately, we live in one the freest countries, if not the freest country on earth. And the things that happened in New York last week, I don’t know that we can ever safeguard completely against it. And what happened yesterday was an immeasurable tragedy,” he said.
More: Marilyn Manson Under Scrutiny After Pointing Fake Rifle at Crowd
Manson has since spoken out about the incident. He defended the stunt as an “act of theater.”
“In an era where mass shootings have become a nearly daily occurrence this was an act of theater in an attempt to make a statement about how easily accessible semi-automatic weapons are and how seeing them has become normalized,” Mason said in a statement to Rolling Stone.
“My performance was not meant to be disrespectful or show any insensitivity,” he continued. “The prop microphone I used on stage was handed to me with the approval of a police officer.”
