Back in 2018, Czech music publication Fakker! dedicated a notable chunk of their April issue to Hollywood Undead, who were hot on the heels of the release of their fifth studio album and in the midst of touring worldwide in support of that record.
The issue features several interview segments, as well as a handful of additional article pieces. Collectors and Czech readers and still procure a digital copy of the original issue here which features a lot of great photography, HU-themed page layouts and more, and be sure to follow Fakker! over here on their official Instagram page for more.
For our English readers, we’ve produced our own automated translation below of this over six year old piece of HU media for archival purposes. Looking for more? Check out our full Interview archive here, featuring the Internet’s largest collection of Hollywood Undead interview material.
Virtue has a Veil, Vice a Mask
FIVE DAMN LIVE UNDEAD HEADS WITH MASKS, FIVE VIEWS OF ONE PLACE. FET, BOOZE, HOOKERS, MISERY, MURDER, DIRT. THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE THEMES INTERWOVEN IN THE LYRICS OF AMERICAN BAND HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD. THEY ILLUMINATE NOT ONLY THE DARK SIDE OF LOS ANGELES BUT ALSO EVERYTHING SURROUNDING THEIR ARTIFICIAL FACES, WHICH, IN THEIR CASE, ARE UNDOUBTEDLY THE MOST RUMMAGED-THROUGH TOPIC, DETAILED TO US BY THE DUO OF JOKERS, GEORGE “JOHNNY 3 TEARS” RAGAN, JORDON “CHARLIE SCENE” TERRELL, AND NODDING JOREL “J-DOG” DECKER, BEFORE THEIR SOLD-OUT FEBRUARY CONCERT IN PRAGUE.
KILLER CAN BE ANYONE
NICE FROM THE BEGINNING: WHERE DID THE IDEA COME FROM THAT YOU WOULD PRESENT YOURSELF IN MASKS?
Johnny: When we started out, each of us was kind of in other bands and kind of not. We didn’t intend to build the foundation of HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD on anonymity, we just wanted to look different, cool… Our music was and is different, so why shouldn’t our appearance be too? In the beginning, a friend helped us with our image, and we still collaborate with him on props. We wanted to create something artistic not only musically but also visually.
Charlie: There’s something special, strong about masks. Imagine a movie like Friday the 13th. That killer can be anyone, like the person you buy coffee from at Starbucks. Totally crazy!
I ASSUME YOU DON’T MAKE THE MASKS YOURSELVES. OR DO YOU?
Johnny: We made the first masks ourselves, but now we have someone who makes masks exactly for us, molds them to fit our faces.
Charlie: It’s a guy who does visual effects in the film industry, like for my favorite “Army of Darkness” or “Evil Dead”. He makes masks, among others, for GHOST, KANYE WEST…
Johnny: His name is Jerry Constantine. He’s a bit of a nerd. (laughs)
THERE ARE OFTEN PEOPLE WHO CONDEMN BANDS WITH MASKS, INCLUDING YOU. OR THEY ACCUSE YOU OF COPYING THIS IDEA FROM SLIPKNOT…
Johnny: If we were to get into details, SLIPKNOT weren’t even the first band with masks. My opinion is that you can never separate image from music; it’s a whole, and especially appearance qualifies your music. Look back in history—ancient Greece used masks in theater and musical performances. The same applies to Japan centuries ago. SLIPKNOT have nothing to do with why HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD wear masks. Masks simply emerged from somewhere, as something noble, and I don’t think it had anything to do with music at first. As for derogatory comments from people, you just have to ignore them.
Charlie: You could say SLIPKNOT copy KISS, KISS copy someone else…
JOHNNY, YOU SAID DURING YOUR CREATION THAT MASKS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE YOUR ANONYMITY. HOW IS IT TODAY?
Johnny: That was really only at the beginning. As I said, we didn’t start with masks for the reasons like SLIPKNOT or MUSHROOMHEAD. We just did something with masks, something without them, but we didn’t want them to define our direction in the long run.
APPEARANCE IS OVERRATED
DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD HAVE ACHIEVED SUCH SUCCESS WITHOUT THE MASKS?
Charlie: Hard to say. We didn’t build our existence on masks. I would say we are where we are mainly because of our music and our approach to fans. Of course, masks have given us a lot, like more attention from the media.
Johnny: I don’t think any of us can really say if we would be where we are without the masks. However, our image helped us a lot at the beginning. The media noticed us quickly, we were in the spotlight, but over time, it became clear that the masks kept us apart, away from the fans. That was also one of the reasons why we started taking them off at concerts. It was never about completely hiding our identity or anything like that.
WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THE FAN BASE OF HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD? MANY OF YOUR FANS BUY COPIES OF YOUR MASKS, POSE WITH THEM BEFORE THE STAGE, TAKE PHOTOS…
Johnny: I think it’s great. It connects us a lot with the fans; everyone gets involved in our show. Let me correct you a bit, though, because from what I’ve seen, many people don’t buy the masks but make them. That’s completely great, and we’re glad we can support the artistic side of the younger generation, who mostly come to our concerts and listen to our music. They usually try to create their own mask.
Charlie: My mask… (laughter)
HOW IMPORTANT IS IMAGE FOR THE BAND TODAY?
Johnny: I would say, with the pressure of social media and the internet today, it’s quite important. If a band with a flashy image surfaces, you hear about it immediately.
Charlie: I also think it always correlates with the quality of music. If you have great music, you’ll always succeed, no matter if you’re ugly or beautiful. Music speaks for itself; sometimes the image speaks for itself, but music is always the most important, as the primary content. It’s sad that media and the internet create pressure for people to look good. Society is too preoccupied with appearance. Take someone like Post Malone, for example. He makes excellent music, but he’s not exactly a role model, and you see derogatory comments on his Facebook daily. And he’s one of those people who reads and checks everything. Can you imagine how he feels? Why do people do that? Do they have such poor and boring lives that they spend most of their time insulting strangers on the internet? I consider myself quite intelligent, but I really don’t understand that…
THE STINKIEST MASK
HAVE YOU EVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS BECAUSE OF THE MASKS? SUCH AS WITH PROMOTERS OR THROUGH THE MEDIA?
Charlie: We’ve never really heard anything from people, but then there’s the technical side of things. Masks fall apart, it’s no fun to carry them around, they stink, especially one of our members, I won’t say who…
Johnny: Danny! (laughter) At the moment, we have someone who takes care of the masks for us every day because they have built-in electronics and need to be cleaned, dried, otherwise we’d get a few good smacks. Anyway, despite all the effort, it’s worth it. When you mentioned the media, a few times at the beginning, we weren’t picked up for TV or various shows, but surprisingly, we had more issues around the music, which many considered controversial, aggressive, and offensive. Considering everything happening in the world, it’s completely laughable to me, but that’s just how it is.
CONTROVERSY IN YOUR MUSIC? I’VE SEEN AROUND TWENTY SHOWS WITH MARILYN MANSON AND THEY DIDN’T HAVE A PROBLEM GETTING ON TV, EVEN THOUGH HE BASICALLY HAS A MASK TOO…
Johnny: That’s because Manson laid the groundwork for something completely new. Have you seen his speech at the awards ceremony, where he played “Beautiful People”? That moment simply moved the foundations of American culture. He is primarily an icon, a persona in himself, and at that time, he entered the mainstream, adorned the top spots of TV and radio charts. It could be said that at that time, even MTV stood for something significant for artists. Maybe if we pulled out such a hit that got us to the top and made us a mainstream band, maybe they’d also put us on TV shows. (laughter)
Charlie: I don’t know what people’s problem is with masks. I think they’re more scared of what’s behind them than the masks themselves. Besides, every era demands its sacrificial lamb, which we became ourselves in many respects.
YOU SAY YOU DON’T HAVE MAINSTREAM SUCCESS, BUT HEY, SOLD-OUT CONCERTS AHEAD OF YOU, MILLIONS OF FANS AROUND THE WORLD…
Johnny: Yeah, of course, we know that, but we’re talking about television. Today, MTV is shit, overall shows, especially the musical ones, aren’t worth much. Not even being on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine carries as much weight as it once did. If someone bumped into us on the street, they probably wouldn’t recognize us, whereas they’d recognize Manson, even the guy from the gas station.
Charlie: It’s about the fact that they’ve taken over everything with social media and especially YouTube. Maybe today it’s not even possible to achieve successes like those mentioned bands. The internet has been great in many ways, but it has also severely crippled the music industry. And not just that.
SLIPKNOT VERSUS HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD?
There always seems to be someone who compares masked bands like HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD, or others, to SLIPKNOT just because of the masks. It’s true that MUSHROOMHEAD has perhaps taken this comparison the furthest, but even the group from L.A. hasn’t escaped this topic. As the guys mentioned in the interview, SLIPKNOT weren’t even the first band to use masks. If we delve deeper into the past, we encounter artists like KISS, KING DIAMOND, and others, where makeup, although discussed in detail, also functioned as a form of masking. By the way, FAKKER covered the makeup of musicians in detail in February. As HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD and we outlined, musical performances have been associated with masks and theatricality since ancient Greece, Japan, and other countries. Therefore, the core of the issue lies with the fans. So, there has never been any conflict between HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD and SLIPKNOT. On the contrary, Shawn “Clown” Crahan directed the “We Are” video, in which the music portal MetalSucks found its shoes.
MMM OR MINI MASK MANUAL
Just like in music, there seems to be a certain allegory in HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD’s masks capturing minimalist deviations. Are you searching for subtle nuances and differences in their new songs? Certainly, don’t just stop at the music; thoroughly examine their masks with each new phase. With the upcoming album, as with new music, comes a new variation of masks. For their latest album “V,” each member even has three new models, which are only differently colored but still give the stage a great facelift during the latest album. There are also differences in appearance between promotional photos and live performances. For concerts, they wear masks with cut-out mouth holes to hear better and breathe easier.
J-DOG
His classic hockey mask features a one-dollar bill on the mouth and blood dripping from the eyes. These also appear like a burning cigarette butt or possibly a burn from him, though he has never commented on that. J-Dog has stuck with this model the entire time, with minor variations, throughout his time in the band.
CHARLIE SCENE
A more laid-back and comfortable style has been Charlie’s creed from the start, which led him to choose a scarf with his own pseudonym and sunglasses. However, during the early days of the first album, he didn’t even have the mentioned piece of covering, so he used a scribbled paper bag from fast food, with holes cut out for his eyes.
DANNY
The most radiant of them all. In most cases, Danny wears a golden metallic mask with minimal modifications. Only during the “Notes From The Underground” album did Danny have a Latin cross over his left eye. Although the band claims that the masks have nothing to do with anonymity, this isn’t entirely true for Danny. He has actually become one of the most mysterious members, rarely appearing in interviews.
JOHNNY 3 TEARS
His first mask was a classic hockey mask with the mouth taped over with gaff tape and spilled black paint around the eyes. Over time, he removed the tape over the mouth, added the number three to the mask, and butterflies, which he also has tattooed on his body. Just like his nickname suggests, the number three has been associated with Johnny since the beginning, when his first band was named Three Tears.
FUNNY MAN
A bag over the head is perhaps the simplest description of Funny Man’s mask. The biggest change occurred during the “Swan Songs” album period when his mask took on a gorilla look with three dots on one cheek and the initials FM on the other. However, he has since distanced himself from “uncomfortable” masks and currently wears a simple perforated black mask.
Jerry Constantine, Man of Many Masks
Meet Jerry Constantine, a 42-year-old guy from the USA, a small but significant figure behind the scenes, a master of his craft. As a child, Jerry developed a fascination for horror movies, secretly watching them from under the table while hiding from his nanny. Shortly after finishing his studies, he seized an opportunity and began working in Los Angeles on masks for movies such as “Chronicles of Riddick,” “Scary Movie 2,” “Van Helsing,” “Watchmen,” “Fantastic Four,” “Spider-Man,” “300,” “G.I. Joe,” and more. Among his achievements, he also contributed to the visual effects in the film “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” for which the entire team received an Oscar. It’s highly likely that you’ve seen one of his creations in a movie.
His work for HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD was heavily inspired by the character Jason Voorhees from the horror film “Friday the 13th,” known for wearing a hockey mask. His obsession with this character became a key aspect in designing masks for the band, which the members quickly identified with. About half a year ago, the streaming service Spotify released a video featuring Constantine and the entire HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD, providing a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of the masks, almost like a tutorial.
Jerry personally discussed his work in an interview with the Hello Horror channel. “This will never be just digital work. Sure, I create a lot of designs on the computer, but it’s mostly a hands-on craft. We start with molding according to the shape of the face, then proceed with carving, followed by painting, usually using a paintbrush… The guys [band members] contribute a lot to the motifs themselves, but we’ve stuck to the same foundation since the beginning,” Constantine describes his work on the masks. You can find him on Facebook at CONSTANTINE FX.
UNDEAD ARMY
One of the most essential feelings for fans during a concert is to engage with the band’s activities. Naturally, this is often reflected in their attire. For example, some fans might wear masks similar (though not necessarily identical) to those worn by members of HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD. These masks can be independently acquired, for instance on eBay. There also exists a self-proclaimed community of HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD fans, consisting of devoted admirers who enthusiastically create masks of their favorite band members at home and proudly display them at every concert. Just like with the original masks, there are plenty of tutorials available on YouTube for these “home-made” versions.
The band actively encourages the creation of homemade masks and loves seeing crowds of masked fans at their concerts. Similarly, tattoos featuring HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD motifs, fan-made videos, and other creative expressions are warmly embraced. Numerous fan communities can be found on Facebook and Instagram, where they regularly post encounters with band members or share concert experiences. You can check out lots of interesting photos, for instance on Instagram profiles like _.funnysweed._, scnfdm, and of course, don’t forget about the thematic memes on hollywood_undead_memes.
UNMASKED!
Imagine what it’s like to perform fifteen songs on stage with a mask on your face. Not everyone finds it comfortable; some might feel like a character straight out of a crazy horror flick. Moreover, HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD masks contain electronics, so there’s a risk of short-circuiting if they get wet. Frankie Palmeri from EMMURE could probably share a story or two about a rough encounter with a microphone during a concert, likely due to a mix of sweat, water, and faulty electrical wiring. Now, imagine what could happen to the electronic gadgets inside a mask worn on the face…
When asked why they remove their masks during concerts, the band simply replied that it’s to hear themselves better. They usually discard their masks after three or four songs. Whenever HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD is active, this has always been the case. If you notice a member without a mask throughout a concert, rest assured it’s just a temporary measure during the tour.
About five years ago, unmasking became “fateful” for J-Dog at one concert. After the show, he couldn’t find his mask. “It was one of those concerts where fans got onto the stage, and suddenly I realized my mask was missing. There was a guy running around with a mask identical to mine. I took it off him, and it really was mine, but there was no drama. I gave it back to him, and he left happily,” described J-Dog. Since then, technicians have been on stage with the band, immediately taking care of and packing up the masks.
