Alex Skolnick, the famed guitarist of thrash metal band Testament, has released a new jazz-inspired rap protest song called “Trump Sucks.” As the title indicates, the song is a scathing tune directed at current Donald Trump and his administration.

The rap tune clearly has jazz undertones and inspirations, which will be no surprise to fans of Skolnick, who has long been known for his jazz guitar playing and appreciation. The rocker most recently showed off his jazz abilities with his cover of the Dua Lipa track “Don’t Start Now,” which he released in April. The song was originally released as a single by the British singer/songwriter in 2019 before appearing on her recent album Future Nostalgia, debuted earlier this year on the Warner Records UK label.

In a comment released with the video on YouTube, Skolnick discusses his inspiration for the new track while also explaining its off-the-cuff approach and quick production process. “This song just poured out of me yesterday,” explains Skolnick in the comment. “It was completed in a matter of hours.”

Skolnick then nods to the fact that the song itself was inspired by Trump supporters commenting on the rocker’s social media pages.  “To all the # Trump2020 and # Maga folks who’ve been flooding my timelines ever since my post the other day about the election, I’d like to say thank you, sincerely. You’ve inspired me to do something a bit different (for me, anyway): Rapping Enjoy! 😘” Skolnick then finishes his comment by alluding to the fact that he was not interested in “debate” over the song. “PS No time for debates here,” writes Skolnick. “If you hate it, please ignore, wait for another post you like better or unfollow. Cheers 🍻 And oh yeah.. #trumpsucks”

Earlier this month the guitarist appeared in the Six String Salute live stream concert supporting Crew Nation, a global relief fund for live music crews impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Photo credit: Marv Watson