Nearly 30 years into their career, Papa Roach continue to keep the ball rolling with new music and high-energy live shows. Just prior to taking the stage at the recent Louder Than Life festival in Louisville, Kentucky, singer Jacoby Shaddix sat down with Heavy Consequence to discuss Papa Roach’s latest album, Ego Trip, his personal struggles, the ups and downs of the band over three decades, and more.
Ego Trip, which is Papa Roach’s 11th album, arrived in April of this year. As Shaddix told us in the video interview above, it was truly a pandemic album. “We called each other up, and were like, ‘Let’s go into a house, let’s rent a joint, and go create music together again. So we got this house in Temecula, California, and proceeded to break all the walls down creatively between us … and it was a great kickstarter for this album.”
Shaddix, who has been open with his struggles with mental health and addiction in the past, is known for wearing his heart on his sleeve in Papa Roach’s lyrics. “It’s absolutely cathartic,” said Shaddix of his songwriting. “To understand my feelings and to put them in their place [and] not always let my feelings rule where I’m at and what I’m doing.”
He continued, “I’m a super-sensitive-ass dude. I’m just gonna be real. I just am. Like hyper-sensitive. That’s why I liked to use and abuse drugs and alcohol back in the day. It was just ’cause feeling was just too much for me. I was weak, and I had to become a stronger person to have some thicker skin and exist out in this world.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Shaddix discussed Papa Roach’s recent No. 1 rock hit “No Apologies,” specifically on how it dealt with his estranged relationship with his father. He also touched on Papa Roach’s upcoming 30th anniversary as a band, with the group having formed in 1993.
Papa Roach were just announced as part of the massive new Sick New World festival headlined by System of a Down, Korn, Deftones, and Incubus. The one-day fest takes place May 13th in Las Vegas, with tickets available here.
Watch our full interview with Jacoby Shaddix in the video player above, and pick up a copy of Ego Trip here.
Trouble viewing the interview in the video player above? Watch on YouTube.
