Serj Tankian
Serj Tankian
Serj Tankianis a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, poet, and political activist. He is best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, keyboardist, and occasional live rhythm guitarist of the rock band System of a Down, formed in 1994 by four Armenian-American friends...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMetal Singer
Date of Birth21 August 1967
CityBeirut, Lebanon
CountryUnited States of America
I've had people come up to me with the strangest interpretations of what lyrics might mean, and I'm like, 'You go! I never thought of that, but that works,' ... I think true art is a universal reflection, and true artists are just messengers of that reflection - or, at best, skilled presenters.
I am more interested in how people interpret the phrase 'Elect The Dead' than what I may or may not have intended. I named the album after the track, which is a spiritual song about love, life and death and is the heaviest song on the album without having any heavy instruments.
The packaging is designed so that when people buy the second record, they can attach it to the first, making it a double record...
People get so attached to a position which they identify themselves with that they just spurt it out, but they can't really give you a viable reason why they feel that way.
A lot of pop music is based on trying to make people remember it so that they'll buy it. To me, it was not about that.
Nations are like people. Once you understand the interactions between nations, it's easy to understand why things are done, in terms of foreign policy, in a certain way. But nations are not like people in the sense that we are cumulatively represented by others - and their interpretations of what our interests are may not be the same as what they really are. And that's what's dangerous, even in a democracy.
As long as people are living their truth or their vision, whether they're activists or not, that's the important thing.
I think nobody wants to hear a sermon. Well, some people do, but maybe not through music or not with me. No one wants to hear me give a speech that way.
With most of the songs and music that I've composed, irrespective of the myriad videos made, I was always careful not to overly define the experience, leaving room for people to internalize things for themselves, making their experience more integral.
People always ask me 'do you think there should be more bands doing political music?' and I say 'absolutely not.'
I think music has the ability to inspire people and to change hearts, and the heart has the power to change the mind, and the mind has the power to change the world.
Praise the Lord! Pass the ammunition! God wants you to go to war! (From live performance of 'War?')
That's been a strength in some ways, but it's also an understanding of the dynamics of music and the different beats and melodies that wouldn't be common to a non-Armenian.
We fought your wars with all our heartsYou've sent us back in body partsYou took our wills with the truth you stoleWe offer prayers for your long lost soul