October 10, 2010
“Have You Ever Stood Next to an Elephant, My Friend?”
Jon Ronson interviewed Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope, the two members of the Detroit-based rap group Insane Clown Posse, for The Guardian. Ronson seems to enjoy striking the pose of incredulity during the interview, which features the revelation that the rappers are actually Evangelical Christians. Take for example their discussion about the group’s recent and much-maligned single “Miracles“:
One of the ICP road crew locates the video on his iPhone, and it is indeed withering: “The [Miracles] video is not only dumb, but enthusiastically dumb, endorsing a ferocious breed of ignorance that can only be described as militant. The entire song is practically a tribute to not knowing things.”
“Fuck you, man,” says Violent J. “Shut the fuck up.”
“Did you anticipate this kind of reaction?” I ask them.
“No,” sighs Violent J. “I figured most people would say, ‘Wow, I didn’t know Insane Clown Posse could be deep like that.’ But instead it’s, ‘ICP said a giraffe is a miracle. Ha ha ha! What a bunch of idiots.’” He pauses, then adds defiantly, “A giraffe is a fucking miracle. It has a dinosaur-like neck. It’s yellow. Yeah, technically an elephant is not a miracle. Technically. They’ve been here for hundreds of years…”
“Thousands,” murmurs Shaggy.
“Have you ever stood next to an elephant, my friend?” asks Violent J. “A fucking elephant is a miracle. If people can’t see a fucking miracle in a fucking elephant, then life must suck for them, because an elephant is a fucking miracle. So is a giraffe.”
I love Jon Ronson. He’s like a British Hunter Thompson without the demons.
comments
Leave a Reply
“The miracles of ICP are somewhat like the irony of Alanis Morissette, in that none of these things are, by definition, miraculous.”
I like ZJ. Is she an android?
Yesterday, in the wake of Ronson’s Guardian piece, ZJ posted a new video: Insane Clown Posse: not fans of ZJ.
I like ZJ too, but, she scares me a little.
She has a lot to say
If I had to pick an album, I’d say Bizaar was the tipoff for me.
[...] Josh’s ICP post led me to Jon Ronson’s documentary work, specifically Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes, which can be viewed in its entirety on YouTube. [...]
It’s hard to care too much about this, but I have always found a messianic quality to some the ICP lyrics and it’s nice to have a confirmation. How I came to have that opinion is a story in its own right.
Hitching a ride with what turned out to be a pair of juggalos in Utah on highway 70 was also the most terrifying moment in my life.
I would watch a video of that, Andrew. I guess there isn’t one, though. Is there?
Sadly, no.
I’m watching a video of it in my brains right now.
It’s a movie. They’re driving (inexplicably) a 1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera white with maroon interior and full makeup.