John Belushi Defends The Blues Brothers Concept In Newly Surfaced Interview

In a 1979 interview shared for the first time as part of the Audible documentary, Blues Brothers: The Arc of Gratitude, John Belushi responds to criticism that the band was ripping off Black culture.

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Soho Weekly News music critic Steve Bloom talked with Belushi about the backlash.

“It’s just weird, you know?” Belushi said. “Why would I do these things? The people watching me understand why I do it, and the band members do. The other people – there’s a certain amount of jealousy, I think, involved. … Why do I do what I do? First of all, it has nothing to do with ego, it has nothing to do with money, you know, or the need to be loved by an audience. I don’t have any of those feelings.”

He continued, “What the f— do these people think I am, anyway? I can’t f—ing understand why they would attack – see, when they attack me, they attack the band, and I hate when they attack the band, because then it makes them look like schmucks for doing what they did for me.”

Bloom pointed out the cultural approptiation.

“You see, there’s a long line of cases where white musicians play Black music and make money, while the Black musicians don’t make the money, supposedly,” Bloom said.

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“That’s not the purpose of the Blues Brothers,” Belushi countered. “I say on the record, ‘Buy as many blues records as you can.’ [I] introduce my band, which is never done. I share the stage with each member of the group, which is never done. I have Danny Aykroyd, you know; we all split everything right down the middle. I give the people, artists parts of the album. I’m putting them in a movie, you know? Nobody believes me.”

He added, “I’m not f—ing fantastic, but that’s not the point.”

Three years after the interview, Belushi died of an overdose at age 33.

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