Bille Joe (Green Day) shows some love for the Ivy Room
Billie Joe Armstrong: Green Day is first band ‘actually from the Bay Area’ to headline Outside Lands
Q: Many big bands claim to love where they’re from, but very few of them open local guitar shops and coffee joints or play small dives around the region regularly. What keeps Green Day in love with Oakland and the East Bay?
A: I love playing live. I don’t like to shut everything down after we get done with a record cycle. I love to go and get onstage, whether it’s at the Ivy Room or the Golden Bull or even Eli’s Mile High Club. Those are all great clubs. Now there’s Crybaby as well, which used to be the Uptown. I’d love to play there. It’s weird because we have the option to play any size venue that we want, but you get stuck into a corner if you’re only playing giant shows where you have to have this massive crew. I still like to put my amp in the back of the car and just cruise down and play some intimate venue. I just show up, play covers and have a really good time. That’s a whole different way of playing live. I think you learn more from it.
A big comedian, like Dave Chappelle, goes and plays small shows and tries out new material to see what sticks. For me, being onstage teaches me how to relax, and really, it’s all just for fun. I just feel like it’s something I was born to do, so I might as well do it.
