LISTEN: That time Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong came out in the most punk rock way possible
Dookie in February 1994, Green Day had already built a name for themselves in the punk rock scene around San Francisco. At the time, they were still underground, but quickly developing a fan base with their energetic performances and catchy tunes.
One album changed all that, turning them from local heroes to global superstars.Dookie is remembered to this day for its many hits, but among the title’s 14 tracks is a deeper cut that LGBTQ+ listeners have latched onto for decades.“Coming Clean” sees frontman Billie Joe Armstrong opening up—coming clean—about his own sexuality.
He isn’t explicit in the discussion, but songwriters don’t need to be in your face with what they’re trying to say. That’s the art of it all… but he certainly hints at what he might be going through.The tune begins with the line “Seventeen, and strung out on confusion” which is a feeling many LGBTQ+ people can identify with.
The confusion of not understanding what’s going on inside one’s self as they develop and become sexual beings is tough, and it’s one that Armstrong had to endure as well.He continues that youth-minded thinking, singing, “I’ve found out what it takes to be a man / Well, Mom and Dad’ll never understand.” Here he also touches on masculinity and what society believes makes a man, which might not be in line with what Armstrong is feeling in his heart.The lines that make it almost 100% clear what Armstrong is talking about—without giving everything away—are found in the second verse.
