The album was "pretty much complete," and then the election happened and "suddenly the world changed."
“We just went, ‘Hold on a second – we’ve got to give ourselves a moment to think about this record and about how it relates to what’s going on in the world,'" the guitarist said.
I have friends who get very upset when artists like the Edge (and Meryl Streep) express their political opinions. I get that it bums them out when their favorite musicians or artists so strongly disagree with them. It bummed me out when Cubs pitcher Jake Arietta tweeted that he would personally drive every celebrity out of the country when Trump won. It will probably make me look at him a little differently when he pitches for the Cubs next year.
But that's the point, really. These celebrities are taking a big risk when they speak out. They are potentially hurting their own brands and their own profitablity by upsetting half the country. They know that. They do it anyway because they feel very strongly about whatever they are speaking out about.
It's called the free market. The free marketplace of ideas can lead to the free marketplace of money leaving their pockets. If it bugs you that much, that's the appropriate way to respond. Telling them they can't speak out is ridiculous.
A celebrity named Trump certainly didn't hold back his beliefs before he became a politician.
