Corey Taylor on Donald Trump, The Kardashians, living with a broken neck and Birmingham - star speaks ahead of Midland gig

But Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor says he has no intention of censoring himself any time soon - and the 43-year-old global icon most certainly didn’t mince his words when talking to The Ticket; being very vocal when it came to the ‘Kar-trash-ians’, as he phrases it, and the ‘constant embarrassment’ that is Donald Trump.

Corey’s been through a lot of late; having undergone spinal surgery last year following a five-foot fall from a stage at Ozzfest back in 1999, when he was 25, which saw him land on his head. On Twitter, the star said he ‘basically broke (his) neck’.

Corey opened up about having bouts of severe depression earlier this year too - and even appeared on Viceland’s The Therapist, speaking about his attempted suicide as a teen and abuse he suffered as a child, proving there is no shame in having issues and dealing with them head-on.

Now the star’s starting to feel more like himself again following the surgery and he’s back on the road with his band Stone Sour - coming to Arena Birmingham on November 29, with support from fellow US rockers The Pretty Reckless.

Apparently, he can’t wait.

“In Birmingham they’re enthusiastic for rock and metal and just a huge concert. It’s infectious,” said Corey.

“I could be having the worst day on the planet, but as soon as I get in front of the Birmingham audience everything else is wiped out. They’re one of the best audiences in the world.

“I love the city and the people.

“As soon as I know I’m going back to the Midlands, I get so excited. I love it there.”

Prior to his surgery, Corey was suffering with a lack of strength on the left side of his body, a loss of balance and issues with bladder control. Due to the injury, bone had begun growing into his spinal cord - and in order to fix the issue, the star needed spinal disc replacement and the bone shaved back.

“I’m doing great. On this tour, I’ve had another check-up with my surgeon. And it’s healing well. I’ve rehabbed as best I could. You just have to go with it,” added Corey.

“I’m very, very lucky that we were able to catch it when we did.

“I started to notice the signs, but I figured I was just getting older - which I am.

“Any way, I was referred to a specialist doctor and we got the surgery done. Slowly, but surely, the symptoms have begun to go away. They’re certainly further and further apart.

“I’m now starting to feel like myself again. I’m also losing a lot of the weight I put on following the surgery, because I couldn’t do my normal workouts.

“I’m feeling strong again - or at least getting there.

“Every day it occurs to me how lucky I am.”

Corey has hit the headlines of late for his remarks on pop music - which he has said makes him ashamed to be a singer/songwriter - reality TV and social media stars.

“You mean the Kar-trash-ians?,” laughed the star, when asked about the notorious TV clan.

“My main things is that it’s called reality TV, but there’s nothing real about it.

“It’s just a series of fake, set-up situations, where hopefully they’ll get people to argue with each other and be ugly to each other.

“Maybe that’s why people are increasingly ugly to each other, because shows like that make it look like it’s OK to act like that.

“The whole reality TV thing, to me, is like an affliction. It’s so horrid.

“The people fans follow around are so horrid. They are so vacuous and empty, you could eat cereal out of them.

See Corey and the band in Song #3 here, from Stone Sour's new album Hydrograd:

“The Kardashians are the worst, yet people still follow them.

“Usually, reality shows come and go, but after all this time people are still hanging on their every word - why? It’s embarrassing.

“They don’t do anything you couldn’t see in a bar on a weekend.

“As for social media ‘stars’ getting fame, it’s pretty incredible. Then again, I believe if we didn’t have reality TV, we wouldn’t have it.

“It’s just gotten easier and easier for people to think they’re exceptional.

“It used to be people had to have drive to be a star. Now anyone can do it. It’s pathetic.

“I’m hoping that maybe there’s a cut-off point; a revolution where people reject all that.

“We’ve seen it before with the rejection of online streaming and people going out and buying vinyl. Maybe we’ll see that with this kind of ‘celebrity’.”

Back in 2015, controversial rapper Kanye West claimed to be ‘the greatest living rock star on the planet’. Corey unsurprisingly had a few choice words in response to this - and, since then, has had more to say on the quality of current pop music.

“A lot of it is the same issues that we see with some modern rock. It all sounds like it’s been made by the same person with the same production and tune. Like it’s the same four songs rewritten and reproduced,” said Corey.

“There’s just no soul or life to it. They’re just made up of a series of weird noises that are supposed to be in key.

“For me, modern day pop just lacks any creativity. There’s a lack of any sort of identification.

“There are rare exceptions to the rule, such as Ed Sheeran. But then, I don’t actually consider him a pop star. He’s just an insanely popular singer/songwriter.

“He at least writes his own stuff. And he doesn’t take any smack about it either.

“At least, way back when, bands like The Monkees had songs. And they could at least play.

“It’s insane.

“The only thing I could say is similar between the eras, however, is the craze for the single again. It’s very frustrating as an artist; no one wants to work on albums any more.

“Instead, they spend the same time it would take to work on a whole album to make a single, with a whole bunch of people piled into a room. It’s pathetic when you think about it.”

On the flipside, the star has also come out in previous interviews saying his music can have a negative effect on certain people - leading to them not take their medication or resort to stalking. ‘My singing and my lyrics bring out a certain type of schizophrenia that makes certain people stop taking their meds, and they hyper-focus on me,’ is what the star told Vice.

“I don’t know why it has that effect on people. Obviously there’s a part of me that worries about it; especially in this day and age,” he explained to The Ticket.

“But I can’t just stop what I’m doing. It’s the only thing I’m good at - and that’s debateable.

“I shudder to wonder whether there’s a tonality in my voice that people react to. Or perhaps the way I write.

“It is worrying. I’ve sat down a couple of times and tried to figure it out.

Hear Stone Sour's Through Glass here:

“Maybe it’s simply because I refuse to censor myself. Especially when it’s something I’m passionate about.

“I’ve had some resistance to that recently from some of my fanbase. Some of them have been like: ‘OK Corey - we get it. You have an opinion. Now shut up.’

“But that’s not why I say it. Things get taken out of context - and the more salacious the headline, the better; even if it’s not what the interview was even about. They shouldn’t be able to do that.

“Maybe that’s one of the reasons I’ve calmed down a little bit, but then again, I’ve not really.”

But Corey holds his close connection with his fans high - and puts his influence on people down to his humanity.

“The great thing about having a connection with the fans, I think, is because they can see themselves in me. They can see the music fan in me that they are,” said Corey.

“When I’m one-on-one with fans, we get talking about things we like. There’s a mutual admiration there.

“I guess that’s the reason why my fanbase hasn’t tried to gear me to them.

“It’s also got a lot to do with the fact I’m not just a talking head. There’s flesh and blood to go with it.”

Corey keeps himself busy - with four children, two bands, a series of books and a radio show. In his most recent book America 51: A Probe into the Realities That Are Hiding Inside "The Greatest Country in the World", Corey openly criticises Donald Trump.

He explains his issues with the dividing President:

“Life in the US ain’t great at the moment; put it that way. It’s like living in a dumpster fire,” said Corey.

“Some days are better than others, but we’re in a constant state of embarrassment because of our quote-unquote ‘President’. He’s an embarrassment.

Hear Stone Sour's Bother here:

“I don’t understand people’s support for him.

“It’s getting to the point now where I’m getting angry that no one is calling him out.

“Just yesterday (Oct 17) he said no other US president had ever called all fallen soldiers’ families before him. It’s pathetic.

“It’s just the latest in a list of things people need to start calling him out on.

“And the media who try to call him out, he’s so quick to call it ‘fake news’...

“I’ve never felt anything else like this in our entire history. I don’t know what to do.”

Despite the doom and gloom of the world around us, Corey is urging fans going to their Birmingham show to have a good time. Stone Sour is also bringing new production along with them to the gig, which Corey says he and the band are very excited about.

“The show’s going to be a rock and roll party! We’re going to be bringing a good time,” added Corey.

“The whole tour is based around a mindset. We need rock and metal - everything else is so damn serious all the time. And we’re tired of that.

“Nobody went to see Van Halen because they were trying to work out the grand works of Shakespeare. They went to have a good time. And that’s what we’re trying to do.

“The set’s going to be incredible. We’re bringing along some new production too, which we’re very excited about.

“We want everyone to leave smiling, covered in sweat and still singing.”