Green Day refused to play without Pansy Division in 1994, and a viral video says Ed Sheeran ‘could have avoided all of the messy cleanup’

Rich Laguna, an ex-MTV News journalist, has been very active on his socials as ohhthatsrich. He recently gave his opinion about the controversy surrounding Ed Sheeran and Macklemore. Macklemore was dropped as an opener on Sheeran’s U.S. tour after pro-Palestinian comments onstage.

Sheeran said the decision was the promoter’s, not his, and that venues on upcoming dates told him they would pull shows if Macklemore remained on the bill, CNN reported. Rich’s initial video got over 1.2 million views, but then in the comments, one user came by and provided an example that sent Rich on a research spiral and drew wide attention on TikTok and Instagram. 

The user pointed to a 1994 episode in which Green Day held their ground when a promoter objected to Pansy Division opening for them. When Rich confirmed the story, he shared it in a follow-up post that drew over 2.9 million views in less than 24 hours. He wryly told everyone, “Had Sheeran heard the story, he could have avoided all of the messy cleanup.” He said that when Green Day blew up with their album Dookie, they went on their first major tour.

The controversy began when they brought along the openly gay punk band Pansy Division. He explained, “For those who weren’t there, the late 80s and early 90s might have been the most openly homophobic period in American history.” Despite the climate, Green Day stood by Pansy Division, their former Lookout! Records labelmates. When venue owners tried to force them to cut Pansy Division from the lineup, “Green Day told the venue owners to get f–ked. And you wouldn’t believe what happened. The venue owners all backed down.”

Recognize your power

In the 2000s, the Pansy Division frontman, Jon Ginoli, wrote a short memoir for Magnet Magazine and confirmed this story from his perspective. Ginoli recalled the pressure they faced, specifically at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia. He wrote, “The promoter told Green Day in advance that they wouldn’t allow us to play, that we were inappropriate; Green Day’s response to the promoter was that if we didn’t play, they wouldn’t play.” He wrote that the promoter backed down. 

Ginoli also noted that the band’s support continued even at massive events like a Z-100 radio show at Madison Square Garden, where the station tried to exclude them. Green Day again drew a line in the sand, insisting that if Pansy Division were not allowed to play, they would not perform either.

The impact of this stance was significant. Ginoli noted that in the end, Pansy Division played to around 12,000 people at Madison Square Garden, exposing a massive, mainstream audience to their lyrics and message. As Rich pointed out in his video, “This is the kind of thing that can happen when you refuse to back down from your values. But this is the kind of thing we won’t get because it was too scary for Ed Sheeran.”

Many commenters on Rich’s posts praised Green Day’s stance. On Instagram, one user commented, “And that, boomers, is just one of the reasons that Green Day IS, Indeed, a punk band.” One fan simply noted, “Green Day has ALWAYS stood on business about human rights.”

TikTok was just as decisive. One user stated, “you see Green Day had a spine.” Another TikToker added, “And that my friends is punk, it’s an ethos, not a sound.”

Ginoli’s own perspective on that era reflects the same sentiment. He wrote that the tour brought mail from kids all over the country: “Gay kids would express gratitude and relief that we were so outspoken. Straight kids would write and tell us how even though they weren’t gay, they had gay friends and were members of gay/straight alliances at their high schools.”

In his own statement, Sheeran said he has personal views on the conflict but chooses not to speak publicly, and that he would not abandon the fans, crew and other acts who rely on the tour, according to CNN and the Associated Press.