History BerserkButton / Music

* Never refer to the frontman of the gothic-rock band Music/TheSistersOfMercy, Andrew Eldritch, as a {{Goth}} within his hearing.

* Music/{{Chevelle}}'s song "The Red" is about a character who's [[RedEyesTakeWarning button is pressed]] when someone calls him a freak.
* Ask Music/ThyArtIsMurder to play any of the Brendan van Ryn-era songs, and odds are good that CJ [=McMahon=] won't just refuse, but will also go on a lengthy rant amount how much they (and him especially) hate those songs and their [[MisogynySong lyrics]].

* "Coward Of the County" by Music/KennyRogers, about a pacifist man named Tommy who goes wild on the Gatlin boys (no, not Rogers' country music contemporaries Larry, Steve and Rudy) after learning they raped and badly beat up his girlfriend, Becky. Tommy's reluctance to fight was influenced by his father, who ironically had told him not to ever fight or become physical as he had in his wild, trouble-making days. In the climatic scene, it is implied that Tommy brutally beat up all three Gatlins by himself, especially after they had sneered and laughed at him after they first saw him, and then after he left ... only to lock the door.

* Mark E. Smith of The Fall is a fairly amiable guy. Except if you mention Pavement to him. Do that at your own peril.

* Tell [[Music/GunsNRoses Slash]] to play ''Sweet Child O' Mine''.

* Music/{{Chevelle}}'s song "The Red" is about a character who's [[RedEyesTakeWarning button is pressed]] when someone calls him a freak.

* Abbie Hoffman learned the hard way that, whether or not [[Music/TheWho Pete Townshend]] agrees with your socio-political opinions, if you [[UsefulNotes/{{Woodstock}}interrupt his band's set to rant them]], you will get a [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar to the face]].

* When asked about smooth jazz saxophonist Kenneth "Kenny G" Gorelick, guitarist Pat Metheny gave a well-reasoned argument as to why he didn't like his music but generally had no ill-feelings towards the guy. HOWEVER, when Gorelick dubbed himself over jazz great Louis Armstrong, Metheny delivered a superbly out of character verbal assault, labeling his performance "lame-ass, jive, pseudo bluesy, out-of-tune, noodling, wimped out, fucked up playing."

* Post-hardcore band At the Drive In's (and now TheMarsVolta) Cedric Bixler-Zavala flips a shit when people mosh, slam-dance, or crowd surf during their shows, and has been known to [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi2PjcXO7Zc patronize the audience by calling them sheep and baah-ing at them.]] Omar Rodríguez-López also hates slam-dancing [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSHeW9rLQoQ to the point where he slams his guitar on the ground and stops playing.]]

* Abbie Hoffman learned the hard way that, whether or not [[Music/TheWho Pete Townshend]] agrees with your socio-political opinions, if you [[{{Woodstock}}interrupt his band's set to rant them]], you will get a [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar to the face]].

* Monty Norman wrote the Film/JamesBond theme, not JohnBarry. If you go on record saying that he didn't write it, you ''will'' be sued (and you ''will'' lose - he's done it before and he's always won).

* You can burn my house, steal my car, drink my liquor from an old fruit jar. Do anything that you want to do, but uh-uh, Honey, lay off of my shoes...

* Try calling MarkWahlberg 'Marky Mark' and see how that goes for you.
* Don't call MeatLoaf "Marvin".

* Don't insult {{Music/Eminem}}'s daughter, Halie Jade. Ja Rule and Benzino found out the hard way.

* Abbie Hoffman learned the hard way that, whether or not [[TheWho Pete Townshend]] agrees with your socio-political opinions, if you [[{{Woodstock}}interrupt his band's set to rant them]], you will get a [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar to the face]].

* Considering how much of a [[ThePrimaDonna prima donna]] he's known to be, it's easier to list what ''doesn't'' count as a BerserkButton for [[Music/GunsNRoses Axel Rose]]. The guy's been known to show up late to shows, then walk off thirty minutes in if the lighting is wrong.

* MyChemicalRomance: Do ''not'' mention that you think they're {{emo}}, particularly to singer Gerard Way, who has voiced his hatred for {{emo}} many times and really doesn't like people labelling them as an emo band. (For the record, they're pop punk or alternative rock.)

* In the Replacements song, "Shootin' Dirty Pool," the protagonist loses it when someone shouts out, "Why don't you get a haircut, sister!"
* If you are Mick Jagger of Music/TheRollingStones, ''do not, under ANY circumstances'' refer to your bandmate Charlie Watts as "my drummer." Last time Mick did something like this, Charlie slugged him and said, "[[CrowningMomentOfAwesome Don't you ever call me your drummer again! You're my fucking singer!]]"
* It was a bad idea to mention [[DefLeppard Vivian Campbell]] in front of RonnieJamesDio. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOwZBo8FQvo Behold.]] The ranting starts at about 45 seconds in. Bear in mind this is coming out of probably the [[NiceGuy nicest,]] [[BewareTheNiceOnes most considerate]] guy to ever make heavy metal music.

* Considering how much of a [[ThePrimaDonna prima donna]] he's known to be, it's easier to list what ''doesn't'' count as a BerserkButton for [[GunsNRoses Axel Rose]]. The guy's been known to show up late to shows, then walk off thirty minutes in if the lighting is wrong.

* Never refer to the frontman of the gothic-rock band TheSistersOfMercy, Andrew Eldritch, as a {{Goth}} within his hearing.

* {{Chevelle}}'s song "The Red" is about a character who's [[RedEyesTakeWarning button is pressed]] when someone calls him a freak.

* Abbie Hoffman learned the hard way that, whether or not [[TheWho Pete Townshend]] agrees with your socio-political opinions, if you interrupt his band's set to rant them, you will get a [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar to the face]].
* Considering how much of a [[ThePrimaDonna prima donna]] he's known to be, it's easier to list what ''doesn't'' count as a BerserkButton for [[GunsNRoses Axel Rose]]. The guy's been known to show up late to shows, then walk off thirty minutes in if the lighting is wrong.

* Abbie Hoffman learned the hard way that, whether or not [[TheWho Pete Townshend]] agrees with your socio-political opinions, if you interrupt his band's set to rant them, you will get a [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar to the face]].

When a nice, normal character suddenly goes into a rage, you've hit his BerserkButton.

* Andy Biersack has [[ClusterFBomb cussed out haters]] from onstage multiple times and [[http://youtu.be/XS-pw3FSV_c told anyone who wanted to throw something at him]] that they should come onstage where he can kick their asses.

** Not to mention targeting his fans or his loved ones will piss him(and the rest of the band) off big time. Target their fans and families at your own risk.

** This might have at least as much to do with lazy comparisions due to SmallReferencePools.
* {{Bryan Ferry}}: Don't insult his children, even if they've said things in the press that aren't exactly politically correct (e.g. his son Oliver advocating the controversial fox hunt).
* On The Cramp's "Songs the Lord Taught Us," you can see how well a person fares when interrupting Lux Interior during his studio time. He screams at a friend to "Get the fuck out!" after interrupting a take of "I Was a Teenage Werewolf."
* [[{{Danzig}} Glenn Danzig]] should have known better than to fuck around with NorthSideKings backstage. One good thing did come out of the incident, though: MemeticMutation of him getting decked during a confrontation with one member.
* {{Duran Duran}}: Do not mention Warren Cuccurullo to Andy Taylor fans, or Andy Taylor to Warren Cuccurullo fans. Also, do not mention the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Jann Wenner, the Grammys, Paul Young, Amanda de Cadenet, most American music critics, Hollywood Records, or Mick Hucknall to a Duran fan.
* According to [[{{Music/Eagles}} Don Henley's]] [[http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/don-henley-rider concert rider]], having anyone who's not involved in the production of his show backstage will cause him to become "EXTREMELY UPSET".
* EmilieAutumn does ''not'' like [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6LVn3U4bSI=related people who]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=og6YiLXHs2M&feature=related steal things]] off the stage, ''especially'' her bears. Her fans also tend to get very, very pissed off when things get stolen.
* Don't even ''allude'' to Hailie Jade Scott in a song, lest you incur the [[PapaWolf wrath]] of [[{{Eminem}} her father]].
** Insulting Hailie, in addition to pissing off {{Eminem}}, will also bring down the wrath of D12, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, G-Unit, Obie Trice and DMX. Ja Rule and Everlast can tell you that.

* [[http://www.bryanreesman.com/blog/2011/07/13/dont-piss-off-dave-grohl/ Don't start fights with the fans]] in front of Dave Grohl at a Music/FooFighters concert.
* Never aim your camera at Music/GunsNRoses unless you want to take a beating from Axl Rose, who will dive off the stage and lay the smackdown on you if he sees it.
** Actually, Axl has [[HairTriggerTemper too many Berserk Buttons to count]]. He'll leave the stage because of ONE faulty spotlight.
** To press Steven Adler's Berserk Button, call Axl Rose Music/BonJovi and try to hit him.
* Intrada's Douglass Fake is regarded as one of the nicest, friendliest guys in the soundtrack biz, and one not given to ranting online. Then Gustavo Santaolalla won back-to-back Oscars for scoring ''BrokebackMountain'' and ''Babel''...
* Do '''''NOT''''' mention John Lennon's assassin by name! Seriously, just don't! Mark Lindsay was fired from a Lennon biopic simply because his real name was the same as John's assassin!
* Jazz pianist Keith Jarrett is notorious for stopping his concerts and throwing on-stage fits whenever audience members cough too loudly or make some other distracting noise. There have been reports of cough drops being handed out to the audience before the concert in some instances.
* The Kenny Rogers song "Coward of the County" is about a man who is mocked for cowardice because he never gets into fights ([[spoiler:his father died in prison and made his son swear not to repeat his mistakes, telling him that manhood and violence aren't indivisibly linked]]). Then one day, after ''twenty years'' of being the town's pacifist butt-monkey, three men gang rape his wife and he beats all of them into a bloody pulp. The song closes with him [[spoiler:paraphrasing his father's words]] but declaring that sometimes a good man ''does'' have to resort to violence.

* Scott Lucas of Local H does not take kindly to [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e23zwt5fAHE fans jumping onstage]]. Most of the video for Local H's song Cold Manor (directed by Scott Lucas himself) is made up of live bootleg footage and features at least two instances of him jumping into the audience in an attempt to kick someone's ass.
* As seen on the false start version of "I Was a Teenage Werewolf, DO NOT interrupt Lux Interior while in the studio.

** Bringing up [[LadyGaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta]] around Miss Ciccone is also a ''very bad idea''.

* Don't call MeatLoaf "Marvin" or tease him about his weight. And if you're dating one of his daughters, you will bring her home early or he will introduce you to another kind of bat out of hell.
* One of the contributing factors to [[Music/{{Megadeth}} Dave Mustaine]] being kicked out of Metallica was his berserk button which went off ''constantly.'' Dave once broke a man's arm because he insulted drummer Lars Ulrich. Though Dave was let go of the band, you can't deny that was a rather sweet, if uncalled for gesture.
* From Music/MichaelJackson's ''Moonwalker'', it is NEVER a good idea to harm children in front of Michael Jackson during the "Smooth Criminal" mini-movie/music video. For clarification, Frank Lideo/Mr. Big planned on hooking all the kids in the world on drugs, and when he captures Michael's child friend, Katy, he threatens to get her high. Michael gets pissed. THEN, after he and his guards beat him up a bit, Mr. Big tells a guard to kill Katy. Michael, thanks to a magical shooting star, gets incredibly pissed off, turns into a robot, and takes out all the guards and Mr. Big.

* If you're chatting amiably with a MyChemicalRomance fan, do ''not'' mention that you think they're {{emo}} unless you're wearing flame-retardant clothing.
** This applies to the band themselves as well, particularly singer Gerard Way, who has voiced his hatred for {{emo}} many times and really doesn't like people labelling them as an emo band. (For the record, they're pop punk or alternative rock.)
* When asked about (in)famous smooth jazz saxophonist Kenneth "Kenny G" Gorelick, guitarist Pat Metheny gave a well-reasoned argument as to why he didn't like his music but generally had no ill-feelings towards the guy (a position bordering on saintly, considering most of the jazz world considers him the Antichrist...). HOWEVER, when Gorelick dubbed himself over jazz great Louis Armstrong, Metheny delivered a superbly out of character verbal assault, labeling his performance "lame-ass, jive, pseudo bluesy, out-of-tune, noodling, wimped out, fucked up playing."
* Don't throw stuff at QueensOfTheStoneAge's Josh Homme, or [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNvchjGoyEo mosh into women]] at a show. At best [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kmi3NLpx_YM you'll be called a 'cocksmoker']] and told to "smoke a bag of dicks." At worst you'll be [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfZm32tpWY8 pulled]] out of the crowd and bottled.
** Also, beating your girlfriend is a great way to get Homme to throw you out of the band and tell you to never come back, something Nick Oliveri found out the hard way.

* Never refer to the frontman of the gothic-rock band TheSistersOfMercy, Andrew Eldritch, as a {{Goth}} within his hearing. Likewise, never allow industrial artist Al Jorgenson (Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Lard) near your copies of Ministry's ''With Sympathy'' or ''Twitch'' if you wish to keep them intact.
* On a similar note, mention any other former member of {{The Smiths}} aside from Johnny Marr to Morrissey and you're just asking for trouble.
* Being called 'wacky' used to be a major one for Tommy Scott of Music/{{Space}}, although he decided a couple of years ago to embrace his wackiness. As former guitarist Jamie Murphy put it, "Yes, we're wacky, we're quirky, so what?"
** On a more serious note, ''never'' joke about the Hillsborough Disaster in front of the band. Not only are they Liverpool supporters, but ItsPersonal for keyboardist Franny Griffiths as he is a Hillsborough survivor.
* {{Swans}}: Go ahead, headbang or put your fingers on the stage near Michael Gira, just don't blame me when you get a concussion.
* Do not mention that the Encore line from Creator/VareseSarabande is a good thing to hardcore film score fans. They seriously believe that the label is lazy for reissuing titles and that these hard-to-find titles should remain such (because apparently it's better to spend $100-200 for a potentially bootlegged copy instead of $20 for a new one).
* Averted COMPLETELY in {{Devin Townsend}}'s case, when fans asked about the return of SYL.
* Even if he does agree with your views, Pete Townshend is still going to take you to school if you dare run across the stage stating your views during Music/TheWho's set. Abbie Hoffman infamously did just that during {{Woodstock}}. Townshend was not amused.
* Do not suggest to a WithinTemptation fan that they are a ripoff of {{Evanescence}}, Music/{{Nightwish}}, or any other symphonic metal band that Within Temptation predates.
* Cover versions in general can cause fans of an original artist's blood to boil, especially any case of CoveredUp.
* Do you play guitar? Don't even think of playing "Stairway to Heaven" or "Smoke on the Water" if you want your instrument intact afterwards, unless your name is [[Music/LedZeppelin Jimmy Page]] or [[Music/DeepPurple Ritchie Blackmore]], respectively.
* Due to assorted examples of AwardSnub over the years, it's not a good idea to mention The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame unless it's to complain that your favorite band isn't in it.
* Due to the low royalty payments the popular music streaming service pays out, it's best not to admit to using Spotify to some musicians.
* When Film Score Monthly released [[http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/cds/detail.cfm/CDID/451/Star-Trek-The-Next-Generation-The-Ron-Jones-Project/ a multi-disc set of Ron Jones's music]] from ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', someone thought it would be a good idea to give it the old file-sharing treatment. FSM founder Lukas Kendall [[{{Understatement}} did not like this]].

* You know those announcements before a Broadway musical begins, telling you not to take pictures during the show? You'd better do what they say, especially if the star is [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WruzPfJ9Rys Patti LuPone]]. Not only will she stop singing, chew you out, and have you ejected from the theater, but everyone else will applaud her and you will (deservedly) look like a moron.
* Although he not long after felt ashamed of his own actions and wrote ''TheWall'' about his behavior as a result, with RogerWaters of PinkFloyd in the mid-[[TheSeventies 1970s]] it was not a good idea to throw garbage or firecrackers onstage, and reeeeeally not a good idea to scramble up a fence to get closer to Roger after screaming too loud during a performance of the acoustic ''Animals'' track "Pigs On The Wing". Waters proceeded to spit right in the fan's face onstage in anger.
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* The Kenny Rogers song "Coward of the County" is about a man who is mocked for cowardice because he never gets into fights ([[spoiler:his father died in prison and made his son swear not to repeat his mistakes, telling him that manhood and violence aren't indivisibly linked]]). Then one day three men gang rape his wife and he beats all of them into a bloody pulp. The song closes with him [[spoiler:paraphrasing his father's words]] but declaring that sometimes a good man ''does'' have to resort to violence.