NEWSOK! Exclusive: Brendon Urie from Panic! At The Disco on Partying in Vegas, Married Life, And Why Miley Cyrus Is "Crazy, Crazy Sexy"
Back during my sophomore year of college, I went with two friends to see Panic! at the Disco perform at Starland Ballroom in New Jersey. This is when "I Write Sins Not Tragedies" was like, a major, major hit. And then a few weeks ago, I hopped on the phone with the band's lead singer, Brendon Urie, to talk about their latest album, TOO WEIRD TO LIVE, TOO RARE TO DIE!, which comes out today and is already number 1 on the iTunes album charts. So, this interview is really a full circle moment for me.
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And you know what? Brendon was, just as he was live in concert, awesome. I asked him about going back to his Vegas roots for this new album, what and who his dream party would entail, how tour life has changed since he got married, and what he thinks about having his band's album come out the same day as Miley Cyrus' Bangerz. See his answers to all of the above (and tons more) below!
OK!: This entire album is inspired by your having grown up in Vegas. Was it weird or awesome to go back to your childhood for this album?
Brendon Urie: It was awesome. I was spending a lot of time kind of going back to my roots, hanging out with my family, and just spending time in this place where I grew up, but from a different standpoint, from a different point of view being older, and just take it in as an adult and not a snotty teenager. There is actually a song on the record called “Vegas Life” which is a direct homage to Vegas. Me growing up and how I envisioned it as a kid, when I saw how debaucherous it could be and heard all the stories growing up, growing up in a religious household and being frightened of what Vegas held. Then being excited, from this standpoint of being able to be a part of it and participate in a lot of the fun that Vegas has to offer.
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OK!: The Hangover, Katy Perry—other things in pop culture depict life in Las Vegas too. Do you think they're accurate?
BU: Yeah, sure, I think it is, it is a different take entirely. Katy Perry and “Waking Up in Vegas” obviously is about kind of a debacherous night and you wake up like what the hell happened, and I feel like that is kind of my career in this band. Like, I’ve woken up a couple times like what the hell happened, where the hell am I? So I can take it that way.
OK!: I also read somewhere that you consider this to be a party album. What and who would you have at your ideal party?
BU: Man, that is a really good question! Right now this tour kind of feels like a party, like we’re just hanging out. You’re hanging out with your friends, we’re playing music, it’s kind of like a summer camp. But if I had an ideal party, we would probably play beer pong, and maybe just watch a movie, have a movie going on in the background. God what record would we play? You know, it depends on the vibe and how the party would go, but I’m a big hip hop fan so I’d probably play Kendrik Lamar’s Section 80 or M.A.A.D City, or Asap Rocky, that ones great.
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OK!: What about your wife? Has your wife been on tour with you this time around?
BU: My wife actually came out on the last tour with me, to hang out for a few days which is always nice. I mean, it sucks being away from your loved one, especially your wife, it’s kind of a bummer. So we made a rule to each other that we wouldn’t go more than three weeks tops, two weeks if we could, without seeing each other. So yeah, I try to get her out on tour when I can just for a few days.
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OK!: How have the female fans been responding to your being newly married? Are they sending you hate tweets?
BU: Actually it has been kind of nice! I was expecting a couple different things, like some real bad lashing out, some other comments. But so far it has been really supportive. Married life is—Sarah and I have been together for five years now, and married almost 6 months. So it’s been great, it hasn’t been too different, the only difference is we call each other wife and husband, which is just an extra bonus. It’s really nice.
OK!: Your album is out today, Miley Cyrus' album is out today...any competition?
BU: No. If I was a hot young girl it would be some competition, but it’s not even the same tier. She’s like tiers above us. Have you seen the last video for "Wrecking Ball"? It’s like crazy, crazy sexy. But yeah, if I was a hot girl then that it would be a competition, but I’m just some dude in a band. When they told me, "Oh yeah Miley’s album is coming out that day", I was like awesome I’ll probably get it. I’ll probably buy it, for sure.
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Too Weird to Live, Too Young to Die! is on iTunes now! What's your favorite Panic! song? Do you think there's competition between the band and Miley's Bangerz? Tweet us @OKMagazine.
