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John Lydon, better known as Johnny Rotten, shared a statement on Thursday (Sept. 15) saying that he was distancing himself from the Sex Pistols "cashing in" on Queen Elizabeth's death with their 1977 track "God Save The Queen."
The statement was shared on the Public Image Ltd Twitter account alongside a photo of the Queen. “John Lydon wishes to distance himself from any Sex Pistols activity which aims to cash in on Queen Elizabeth II’s death,” began the thread. “The musicians in the band and their management have approved a number of requests against John’s wishes on the basis of the majority court-ruling agreement.”
“In John’s view, the timing for endorsing any Sex Pistols requests for commercial gain in connection with ‘God Save The Queen’ in particular is tasteless and disrespectful to the Queen and her family at this moment in time," the statement continued. “John wrote the lyrics to this historical song, and while he has never supported the monarchy, he feels that the family deserves some respect in this difficult time, as would be expected for any other person or family when someone close to them has died.”
A spokesperson for the band responded to Lydon's claims in a statement to Deadline, per NME. “We cannot understand what he would be referring to," it reads. "Other than a couple requests for use of imagery or audio in news reports on The Queen and her impact on culture, there’s nothing new relating to ‘God Save The Queen’ being promoted or released in any way.”