Music / spoken word icon Henry Rollins of Black Flag fame recently spoke with David Devo Oosthuizen in Cape Town, South Africa and offered his thoughts on the presidential election campaigns in the US.

Rollins: "You did not know how many racists you shared a country with until a really smart black guy becomes president. And then you find out your country has major problems. And in comes Donald Trump, who speaks in bumper-sticker logic: 'We're gonna build a wall and Mexicans will pay for it. Immigration solved.' He talks tough about China, he talks tough about these countries. Saudi Arabia… you don't shove these countries around if you're America."

"On the other hand, you have Hillary Clinton, who is not my favorite person in the world. However, I think she would actually make a very good president in that she's super boring, she knows leadership, she's been around it, as a senator, as a secretary of state, and as a first lady. I think she's kind of been around it for thirty-something years, and I think she would make a very good status-quo, keep-everything-from-blowing-up kind of president, maybe even beyond that a really, really good one."

"The festival setting is often a tragiclectic mix of ancient and new," writes Henry Rollins in his latest article for LA Weekly.

"I woke up in my small bunk in Clisson, France. I staggered into the cloudy afternoon and milled around by the rows of buses. I heard what sounded like a band playing pitch-perfect versions of Foreigner songs, one hit after another. They were free world rocking without irony, complete with 'Are you ready?!' crowd-rousing banter. From their roar, it sounded like people were into it.

I checked the roster. It was indeed Foreigner. I looked up the history of the band. At this point, it’s Mick Jones, one of the founding members, along with a talented crew of musicians. There was a period when Jones wasn’t in the band, taking a timeout to recover from a medical condition. The band kept touring, with no original members, proving that corporations really are people after all.

Hours later, Twisted Sister were onstage playing their most recognizable song, 'We’re Not Gonna Take It', which seemed to go on forever. 'Let me hear you!' preceded the audience’s massive, sing-along response.

A lot of bands do these blasts from the past. I sometimes go to the shows but can’t understand how the members get through it night after night.

I think it’s safe to say that there are many motives for why groups do this. The most frequently reached conclusion is that it’s for money, and perhaps that’s the biggest one.

Since no one is making you go to these shows, I figure it’s all good. I just think the past is sad. It holds all your failures, humiliations and unrecoverable victories. The future offers opportunities to improve, so why wouldn’t you run at it with all speed? Did the fans get art, or product? Does it matter? I think it does.

A mega rock star once explained to me why he sings 40-year-old songs at every show. He said it was his job to make people happy and to give them a good time. He then asked if that wasn’t the reason I performed. He was confused when I said that the idea of making people happy had never occurred to me as a job descriptor."

To read the article in its entirety, click here.

Henry Rollins kicks off a multi-city spoken word tour on October 6th in Ft. Lauderdale with over 80 additional dates lined up throughout North America including: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, New York City, Vancouver, Toronto and more.

On this tour, fans can expect Henry to mix timely commentary on the current state of politics with anecdotes on his latest LA experiences, to perspective gained from his extensive world travels. Always wanting to present fans with the best possible experience, Rollins’ live talking shows are known for their energy, wit, anger and humor.

Since his last North American spoken word tour in 2012, Henry has been busy, to say the least. The epitome of a workaholic, and spanning multiple genres, Henry is an actor, voice over artist, author, photographer, columnist (LA Weekly), TV host (National Geographic, History Channel, IFC), radio DJ (KCRW) and spoken word performer – having performed countless shows around the world over the last 35 years.

“The world is a more interesting place than ever and I am glad to be out in it. I’m looking forward to all these shows,” says Rollins. Confirmed dates are as listed:

October
29 - Boston, MA - Wilbur Theatre
30 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
31 - Portland, ME Port City Music Hall

November
1 - Pawtucket, RI - The Met
2 - Albany, NY - The Egg
3 - Ithaca, NY - State Theater
4 - Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
5 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
6 - Wilkes-Barre, PA - Kirby Center
7 - Harrisburg, PA - Whitaker Center
8 - Washington, D.C. -Lincoln Theatre
9 - State College, PA - State Theater
10 - Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Lecture Hall
11 - Cleveland, OH - Masonic Temple
12 - Royal Oak, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre
13 - Columbus, OH - Lincoln Theatre
15 - Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room
16 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
17 - Madison, WI - Barrymore Theatre
18 - Des Moines, IA - Hoyt Sherman
19 - Burnsville, MN - Ames Center
20 - Fargo, ND - The Sanctuary
21 - Sioux Falls, SD - Orpheum Theatre
22 - Lincoln, NE - Rococo Theatre
23 - Wichita, KS - Orpheum
24 - Peoria, IL - Jukebox Comedy Club
25 - Kansas City, KS - Uptown Theatre
26 - Springfield, MO - Gillioz Theater
27 - Dallas, TX - House of Blues
28 - Houston, TX - House of Blues
29 - Austin, TX - Paramount Theater
30 - San Antonio, TX - Aztec Theater

December
1 - Boulder, CO - Boulder Theater
2 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre
3 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
5 - Los Angeles, CA - Largo
6 - Los Angeles, CA - Largo
7 - Los Angeles, CA - Largo
8 - Los Angeles, CA - Largo
27 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory
28 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory
29 - San Francisco, CA - Herbst Theatre
30 - Sacramento, CA - Crest Theatre

January
1 - Portland, OR - Revolution Hall
2 - Seattle, WA - Neptune Theatre
3 - Kelowna, BC - Mary Irwin Theatre
4 - Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
5 - Victoria, BC - Alix Goolden PAC
6 - Edmonton, AB - Myer Horowitz Theatre
7 - Calgary, AB Jack Singer Concert Hall
8 - Saskatoon, SK - Broadway Theatre