Eh, lads:
Many publications have taken note of the band's unusual use of
social media accounts, run by Taylor, often to lash out and attack others, something not often done from official band accounts. Music website
Metal Sucks noted in 2015 that the band's official
Facebook account made lengthy posts criticizing viewers of
Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which devolved into the account swearing and berating commenters.
[25] The comment also included
homophobic insults towards internet musician
Rob Scallon, whom the band had feuded with on social media earlier in the year over the unauthorized and unattributed use of Scallon's videos.
[26][27] In 2017, Taylor insulted commenters who disagreed with his defense of
President Trump's
dismissal of James Comey,
[28] and then again later in the year with anyone who disagreed with Taylor's stance that
institutional racism does not exist.
[29]
In March 2020,
Metal Injection,
The A.V. Club, and
Slate all reported that the band's
Twitter account had gone on a week-long effort of arguing with and insulting people.
[30][31] It began with insults of
civil rights activist and
Bishop Talbert W. Swan II and accusations of having a "victim mentality". The comments then expanded into areas such as defending the
Unite the Right rally, calling people "
nerds", challenging the existence of
white privilege in society, supporting Trump's "
Chinese virus" rhetoric in reference to the
COVID-19 pandemic, and
fat-shaming women.
[30] Loudwire noted that many notable bands and musicians later responded to counter or ridicule the claims.
[32] Brown later used the band account to threaten legal action against an unflattering parody account assuming Trapt's identity, only to drop the issue on the same day once the account altered its Twitter handle to make the parody clearer.
[33][34] In May 2020, Brown threatened legal action against multiple
Change.org petitions to keep the band's music off of the upcoming
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 re-release, even though the band's music never appeared on the originals nor was announced for the remaster.
[35] In the same month, Brown used the band's account to blame
George Floyd for his own death.
[36]
How about not voting for these clowns?