Jello Biafra: “I’m not a drug addict, I’m not religious, music is my higher power, and I never know what’s coming next”
We sit down for an audience with former Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra to talk punk, politics, the PMRC and Portlandia…
Words: Mörat
Photos: Ralph Arvesen, Matthew Kadi, Mörat
As the former frontman of legendary punk band Dead Kennedys, and a hugely influential artist in his own right, Jello Biafra has been a thorn in the side of authority since he was old enough to tie his own shoelaces. An advocate of freedom of speech, he ran for mayor of San Francisco in 1979 (finishing third out of 10), faced trial for obscenity in 1986 (finally acquitted but facing financial ruin) and penned such classics as Nazi Punks Fuck Off and Let’s Lynch The Landlord, many of which remain all too relevant to this day.