A few months ago, Mike Love’s jokes about being ‘concerned’ about the ‘gender-specific’ nature of The Beach Boys’ ‘Surfer Girl’ received backlash from the public. So, the singer addressed the matter in a recent chat with The Messenger by standing behind his remarks as follows:
“There’s too much canceling going on. We’re kind of traditional people, and that’s my smart-a** way of saying, ‘I’m not going to be constrained by somebody else’s wokeness.'”
Not About Politics, He Says
Many people took Love’s words as a reflection of his stance on the current transgender issues, especially in the context of new state laws against them. But The Beach Boys member stressed that they had nothing to do with politics:
“It’s not very much of a political statement. It was more like, ‘Let me be myself and say what I feel.’ [The band doesn’t] get involved in politics onstage because we realize it’s a very touchy situation.”
He mentioned the appreciation from fans for the absence of politics at The Beach Boys’ shows by saying:
“People have come up to me after concerts and said, ‘I’m glad we were able to come to this concert and just enjoy the music and not hear about a bunch of politics.'”
Revealing that his words were meant to be funny, the singer added:
“My sense of humor is not always appreciated by everyone. That’s the way humor is.”
The ‘Joke’ And The Reactions
Some believed Love’s onstage joke in July was in reference to discussions about Bud Light’s collaboration with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney for social media promotion, as the comments that arose laughter in the audience read:
“This song I’m a little concerned about doing on account… it’s gender specific. I hope there’s nobody from Budweiser here or the FBI. Sorry I apologize in advance for anything I may say or do. It’s a family tradition. This is dedicated to all of the ladies.”
While a number of people showed support for the singer after his words went public with a fan video, others, including lawmakers, criticized him on social media. In fact, retweeting the clip of Love’s joke, Congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost, D-Fla., wrote on X:
“It’s so sad that Mike Love is such an idiot.”
The Beach Boys members’ position on this matter remains uncertain. Still, many believe that former band members Brian Wilson and Al Jardine oppose Love’s conservative stance, as they openly expressed their disagreement when he performed for Donald Trump in 2020.