Smashing Pumpkins: Billy Corgan says rock was deliberately sabotaged by the music business

This isn't the first time Billy Corgan has floated his theory of a conspiracy against rock. This time, though, he cites dates and methods in his j'accuse, aimed at the entire record industry. According to the Smashing Pumpkins frontman, rock has been deliberately "silenced" since the end of the 1990s. Corgan laid out this theory during the latest episode of his podcast "The Magnificent Others", in conversation with writer and cultural commentator Conrad Flynn (you can listen below).

For the frontman of the band behind "Mellon Collie", the gradual shrinking of rock's presence in mainstream culture was no spontaneous process. "In my view — and I'll say it plainly — rock was deliberately scaled back within the world of culture," he explained. "This gets into the logic of the 'wizard behind the curtain': someone will say, 'how do you know who the wizard was?' All I can say is that I watched the gravity of things shift."

Corgan places the turning point between 1997 and 1998, the years when MTV was redefining its editorial direction. "At a certain point MTV decided that rock was out, even though it was still riding high on the charts and in popular culture. Rap took its place instead."

According to the musician, alongside that shift, the standards of what was considered acceptable in videos and television content also changed. "The rules changed overnight: things that weren't allowed before suddenly were. You'd see people waving guns around in videos. Some claim the CIA was even behind it. That's not my area, but I saw that shift happen with my own eyes."

Corgan does note, however, that plenty of great artists emerged from that shift as well. "It's clear that a lot of important music came out of that phase. You can't call it a creative wasteland. Quality artists and remarkable work came along. But the change in direction was unmistakable."

Today, the Smashing Pumpkins frontman observes, rap seems to have lost some of its cultural centrality while pop dominates the media landscape. Paradoxically, he argues, rock remains one of the biggest sellers of live tickets in the Western world, despite having a minimal presence in mainstream cultural representation.

"Rock is probably still the biggest-selling genre for concerts in the West," Corgan concludes, "and yet it barely exists in mainstream culture. That gap needs explaining. To me, the reason is that rockstars' ability to have a voice within culture was deliberately reduced."

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