Five musicians who hate Howard Stern
The iconic American broadcaster and media personality Howard Stern first rose to global prominence in the 1980s, presenting his popular radio feature The Howard Stern Show. Airing between 1986 and 2005, the show became a cultural staple, known for its irreverent humour, boundary-pushing interviews, and Stern’s unapologetic approach to discussing taboo topics.
Despite his uncompromising persona and larger-than-life reputation, Stern’s journey to stardom began humbly as he cut his teeth on small, local stations while studying at Boston University in the 1970s. He had dreamt of becoming a radio personality since his early childhood when he accompanied his father at his job as a studio engineer.
“When I saw my father as a recording engineer, I was enamoured,” Stern told Billboard in 2014. “Looking at how my father was so reverential to those people, I thought that maybe he could look at me with that kind of respect if I could get behind a microphone.”
Since 2006, Stern has continued to DJ on Sirius XM Radio. In addition to his work on the airwaves, Stern raised his visual profile as a judge on America’s Got Talent from 2012 to 2015.
In all endeavours, Stern’s passion for music has remained a constant driving force. Through his engaging and often controversial conversations, Stern provides listeners with a unique blend of comedy and insight, attracting some of the biggest names in global entertainment. However, his bullish approach and schoolboy sense of humour have alienated some of his famous guests over the years.
Below, we discuss five musicians that Howard Stern rubbed up the wrong way.
Five musicians who hate Howard Stern:
Sammy Hagar
Sammy Hagar, known as the Red Rocker, rose to prominence in the 1970s as the frontman of the Californian hard rock band Montrose. However, he achieved global acclaim in 1985 when he replaced David Lee Roth as Van Halen’s lead vocalist. Stern, who was a fan of Van Halen, wasn’t best pleased with Hagar’s appointment.
Hagar’s “big beef with me is that I don’t enjoy him in Van Halen,” Stern wrote in his 1993 book Private Parts. “That’s pretty pathetic, isn’t it? Now he’s walking around, strutting his stuff, ‘I’m gonna kick his ass.’ He’s not kicking anybody’s ass. A millionaire who’s smart enough not to kick anyone’s ass, who’s he fooling? But he’s going to come off as some scrappy young rock star. He’s full of shit. He’s a phony.”
Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend, the guitarist and leading creative force of The Who, endured a public relations meltdown in 2003. The star was arrested on suspicion of surreptitiously downloading child porn but was later cleared of all charges. Despite requesting that interviewers refrain from probing into the distressing case, Stern broached the topic during a remote radio interview several years later. Townshend abruptly left the call.
Despite ostensible resentment, the guitarist did claim not to be enraged by the incident. “I would not say that I ‘stormed out’ of an interview with Howard Stern; I would say that I walked away,” Townshend said later. “I am not angry with Howard or his team, and they have a perfect right to discuss my sexual past whenever they choose. I am a public person. I decided not to join what was developing into a light-hearted inquisition of sexual subjects that cause widely felt discomfort when not seriously addressed.”
Carnie Wilson
Carnie Wilson is a celebrated singer but is best known as the daughter of The Beach Boys star Brian Wilson. In 1999, she joined Stern on his show to discuss her recent gastric bypass surgery. Wilson had struggled with weight issues for many years and, after reaching 300 pounds, decided to take drastic action.
Before appearing on the show, the surgery had already helped Wilson lose 50 pounds. However, that didn’t stop Stern from overtly fat-shaming the singer, questioning why her fiance would want to be with a woman of her weight. Wilson also recalled that producer Gary Dell’Abate tricked her into standing on a weighing scale before the show went on air.
“I mean, he went nuts, just because he loves to fat-shame,” Wilson said on The Talk in 2017. “It’s like a joke to him, but it wasn’t to me. It was one of the worst experiences I ever had. I was so devastated and so embarrassed. Humiliated, really.” In 2003, Wilson returned to the show 140 pounds lighter.
Dolly Parton
In 2008, Stern exercised his wicked sense of humour at the expense of The Queen of Country, Dolly Parton. He remixed an audiobook featuring Dolly Parton’s narration of her 1994 memoir My Life and Other Unfinished Business. The edited version seemed to portray Parton making controversial remarks, including alleged racist comments and criticisms of fellow musicians, including the country star Linda Ronstadt.
“I have never been so shocked, hurt and humiliated in all my life,” Parton said in an official statement at the time. “I cannot believe what Howard Stern has done to me. In a blue million years, I would never have such vulgar things come out of my mouth. They have done editing or some sort of trickery to make this horrible, horrible thing. … If there was ever going to be a lawsuit, it’s going to be over this.”
Stern responded to Parton’s dismay, arguing that it was just a joke. “It’s an absurd bit. It’s obviously parody, and it’s funny as hell.” No lawsuit was ever filed, but no doubt Parton still harbours ill feelings toward the controversial DJ.
Robert Plant
Admittedly, “hate” is perhaps a strong word for this one. However, the Led Zeppelin frontman was certainly a little perturbed by Stern during their 2017 interview. Although Robert Plant clearly wanted to discuss his new solo release, Carry Fire, Stern, a longtime Led Zeppelin fan, couldn’t help but revert the conversation to the well-trampled topic of Plant’s formative band, which broke up in 1980 following the death of drummer John Bonham.
“I am such a fan of that guy, and I took the wrong approach,” Stern reflected on the interview in a conversation with the New York Times. “He came in, and I’m dying to ask him about Led Zeppelin. I wanted every detail. After a while, he says something like, ‘I don’t want to talk about Led Zeppelin.’ Then I go back and back and back because I was hyper-focused on thinking that’s what the audience wanted. So, in some ways, I blew it with him.”
Throughout the interview, Plant grew palpably irritated. Keeping his cool, he quipped, “Where’d you find this guy?” before asking whether Stern was some inexperienced substitute interviewer.
