Tenacious D will return: ‘Jack Black and Kyle Gass brought it up’ after Trump joke controversy | music

Tenacious D’s Kyle Gass has confirmed he has reconciled with bandmate Jack Black and will reunite, after anger over an on-stage joke about an assassination attempt on US President Donald Trump led to the band taking a hiatus.

During his performance in Sydney in July 2024, when Black suggested making a birthday wish while blowing out the candles on stage, Jas responded, “Don’t miss Trump next time,” referring to the attempted assassination of Trump in Pennsylvania earlier that week.

The resulting uproar, which saw media outlets around the world covering the comments and Australian Senator Ralph Babbitt calling for the band to be deported, ended with Gass and Black canceling their entire Australian tour and announcing that “all future creative plans” were on hold.

But in a new interview with Rolling Stone, Gus said he and Black “have discussed it.”

“We split it up. And it was hard. It’s like a marriage. You go through these ups and downs, and you’re trying to understand your partner,” Gus said. “We won’t serve any D wine, before it’s time for D – but we’ll be back. We’ll be back.”

Gass said the joke was the result of “terrible judgement.”

“I’ve been horrified ever since, because it’s a responsibility not to make mistakes like that,” he said. “I was naive of course – people would pick up on that. But I felt like it was kind of a special moment. I thought I was safe in the bubble. And it happened very quickly.”

He added: “If there was ever a ‘very soon’, it’s this one.” “And I might have thought I was in it, or ahead. But no, it was definitely too early.”

He described the “overwhelming” reaction as a “tsunami of filth rolling over you” and said his 95-year-old mother was then targeted.

“Someone called my mother,” he said. “My poor 95-year-old mother. It hits close to home, and you want to be brave and courageous, but I’m not a member of Congress. We’re just artists. This speaks to the madness of the times. It’s almost a feeling of revenge.”

In the aftermath, Gus and Black seemed to be at odds in their response. In a statement on social media amid the uproar, Black wrote: “I am shocked by what was said on the show on Sunday. I will never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form.”

Gus also apologized afterward, writing: “The line I improvised on stage Sunday night in Sydney was grossly inappropriate, dangerous, and a huge mistake. I do not condone violence of any kind, in any form, against anyone. What happened was a tragedy, and I am deeply sorry for my extreme lack of judgment. I deeply apologize to those I let down, and am truly sorry for any pain I caused.”

Gus deleted the apology days later, leading some fans to speculate that he wanted it back. But Jas told Rolling Stone that he did not retract his apology, saying: “If I had retracted my apology, I would have said so.”

He said that Black and he “were in our own camps” dealing with the fallout at the time, and denied that Black’s apology caused him any problems, adding: “Maybe I deserved it. Or he should have protected himself from his loose cannon partner here. I completely understood once the safety concerns came up.”

Black also assured fans that the group would one day return, saying in August 2024: “We had to take a break… everyone takes a break sometimes.”