Back in September 2025, Yungblud took the stage with Aerosmith and Nuno Bettencourt at the MTV VMAs to pay tribute to the late Ozzy Osbourne. They performed a medley of Black Sabbath hits, and the crowd was feeling it. Aerosmith honored a peer while Yungblud honored a mentor, and all should have been well.
Instead, Justin and Dan Hawkins of the early-2000s rock band The Darkness aired their grievances about the state of rock and roll. These complaints zeroed in on Yungblud, as he’s been on the fast track to rock stardom recently. Yungblud has since responded once again, but here’s the full picture, starting with Dan Hawkins’ comments.
“Another nail in the coffin of rock n roll,” Dan wrote on Instagram. The post included footage from the VMAs of Yungblud performing and Ariana Grande’s enthusiastic response in the crowd. “Cynical, nauseating and more importantly; s***.”
The shade went back and forth for a bit from there. Justin Hawkins supported his brother’s initial criticism, claiming that Yungblud “seems to have positioned himself as a natural heir to the Ozzy legacy, having nothing to do with the really important stuff.”
The Darkness Never Intended to ‘Incite a Feud’ With Yungblud
Fans got involved, making their distaste for the comments known. This led Justin to take to his YouTube channel to dispel rumors that the Darkness were trying to start a feud with Yungblud. In a video titled “Yungblud and the Cost of Having an Opinion,” he shed some light on the criticism.
“There’s nothing ‘feudy’ about it,” he said. “Especially when it comes to my reactions to the VMAs performance. None of that was intended to incite a feud.” He then explained that much of their criticism stemmed from Yungblud’s use of autotune.
“You’re talking about somebody that came from musical theater via Disney and is now being lauded as the future of rock,” he continued. “And if they have real-time pitch correction and that kind of background, I think it’s OK to be a bit skeptical about it.”
Yungblud’s Initial Response to the Darkness: ‘Bitter’ and ‘Jealous’
Yungblud, meanwhile, called the comments “bitter” and “jealous” during an appearance on Jack Osbourne’s podcast. “You will never see someone that’s bigger or more emotionally evolved than you talk s*** on you,” he explained.
Comments on Justin Hawkins’ YouTube video brought attention to this point. Multiple viewers claimed that both Ozzy Osbourne and James Hetfield (whom Yungblud name-dropped as someone who wouldn’t talk s*** on young artists) each have long lists of bands they’ve publicly criticized in the past.
Now, Yungblud has commented further on the criticism in a Billboard interview from December 15. “The criticism at the VMAs was coming from people that were trying to be doormen at a party that they weren’t invited to,” he said. “That’s the harsh reality of it.”
He continued, “If you don’t have that fear that you need to prove something, you’re not on the right path and journey. If people are indifferent about you, then you’re not truly anything at all.”
Essentially, if they love you, you’re doing great. If they hate you, you’re also doing great. And if they’re indifferent, might as well pack it up now. Is Yungblud truly ruining rock and roll with his particular brand of slicked-up, motorcycle-greaser persona, who also uses autotune? Is the Darkness being pretentious and gatekeeping an entire musical style all for the sake of genre purity? And is Yungblud a poseur, and is the Darkness washed up and irrelevant?
Who can say, really. There are good points and bad points on both sides, after all. But I leave you with this. In the end, isn’t the real treasure the music we made along the way?
Photo by Mariano Regidor/Redferns
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