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Posted on 01/14/2026 4:43:22 PM PST by nickcarraway
John Mellencamp has no interest in being a "(Expletive) clown" for his fans.
During an appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, the singer explained why he recoiled from playing arena and amphitheater-sized shows in recent years.
“I got tired of going on tour and being a cheerleader, which is what I was,” Mellencamp admitted. “’Let's do a rounding hit of 'Small Town!' ‘I was born…’ You know, and everybody’d stand up and sing. I was playing to 20,000 people and everybody was drunk and I was just kind of the cheerleader.”
“I just thought, I'm here to be a musician," he continued. "This is not being a musician. This is being a (Expletive) clown. I don't want to be a clown.”
As a result, the rocker decided to change his venue types, hoping for a more intimate experience. “I started playing in theaters,” he explained, “which pissed everybody off.”
Mellencamp previously said that he wanted the theater shows to be regarded more like Broadway performances than rock concerts. Yet even after scaling things down, the singer encountered an atmosphere that wasn’t to his liking. In 2023 he told an audience to “shut the (Expletive)” up and threatened to end his show early. A year later, he called one heckler a “(Expletive),” before telling fans weeks later, “if you want to come and scream and yell and get drunk, don’t come to my show.”
Is John Mellencamp Touring in 2026?
Mellencamp recently announced his 2026 summer tour, which promises nightly set lists loaded with his biggest hits. Unlike the aforementioned theater runs, these shows will be in larger outdoor venues -- so it’s possible the singer’s strict rules regarding audience etiquette will be relaxed.
Concerts are currently scheduled to begin July 10 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and conclude Aug. 12 in Mountain View, California. Mellencamp is also reportedly prepping a new album titled Orphan Train, due out later this year.
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It’s OK, John, you can be a clown without the audience.
Poor baby.
Touring is presumably it, if performers in JCM’s age cohort want to continue earning any decent amount of money in the music biz.
Cellencamp has always been a munt.
My expectations for Lil Johnny Cougar were never very high.
I thought he was just a Leftist.
That's why Spinal Tap opened up for a puppet show...for a more intimate setting.
Only good thing about him was Kenny Aronoff.
Those who keep doing it do it - IMHO - b cause they love performing in front of live audiences and the audiences appreciate the old hits. It works both ways. JCM doesn’t get it.
I have a vague recollection of an old VH-1 show about him that stitched together a series of clips of performances, and a number of different interviews. IIRC, it went something like this:
“Well, when I hit it big, it went to my head. I was a jerk, frankly, and it cost me my marriage. But I’ve grown up a lot and I think I’m a better person now. I learned a lot.”
[musical interlude of some hits]
“Well, the success kept coming and I thought I was really something else. I was a jerk, frankly, and it cost me my second marriage. But I’ve grown up a lot and I think I’m a better person now. I learned a lot.”
[musical interlude of some hits]
“Well, I’d been successful for so long at that point that I thought nothing could stop me. I was a jerk, frankly, and it cost me my third marriage. But I’ve grown up a lot and I think I’m a better person now. I learned a lot.”
[musical interlude of some hits]
Mellencamp is showing a bit of arrogance and snobbery there.
Take a look at your cars and your house, John. Every nice thing you own is due to your fans. They deserve more than a little respect, pal.
His being a clown had nothing to do with his music. Shut up and sing, go home and STFU.
Ugh
I watch this once in a while or to show people my idea of live rock and roll. Roger McCain and co at MSG for Dylan tribute
Clips of the crowd entering. A smiling Kris Kristofferson. And that moody John Mellencamp dragging some unlucky woman.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGEIMCWob3U
John Cougar is a left wing a-hole. f him.
Last live show I attended was Lyle Lovett and Chris Isaak on a double -bill and they both put on one heckuva concert … and did a couple numbers together too. Great show and there as no kvetching about playing oldies…. I swear if Chris Isaak had beckoned my gf would have dropped me like a hot rock lol. She was smitten.
He didn’rt grow tired of being a clown until he attained “FU Money Status”.
Before he got very rich, he didn’t mind being a clown at all.
Roger McCain
Phooey
Roger McGuinn
Roger McGuinn from the Birds?
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