Death Grips Soundtracked the Destruction of Donald Trump's Hollywood Walk of Fame Star

The man who took a pickaxe to the star has broken his silence

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Dec 12, 2018

This past July, Austin Clay destroyed Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and he's now revealed that the music of Death Grips was instrumental in obliterating the monument.

Retelling the story to GQ, Clay wrote that he "bought a pickaxe at the Home Depot in [Glendale, CA]. I concealed it in a guitar case, and I went down to the star. I put on some headphones; I was listening to Death Grips, which is some high-energy, ridiculous music. It gave me the energy I needed to tear through the star."

While Clay didn't name a specific track, there are no shortage of Death Grips cuts that fit his description. We'd like to imagine striking the star with all his strength to the grim, lurching "Lock Your Doors," or making the job a quick and dirty one to "Lord of the Game."

"I'd heard from a lot of people that a sledgehammer was the right tool for the job, but the pickax worked," Clay continued. "Rocks were flying up in my face. I wanted to obliterate the thing, because I thought that would be a statement: We're removing him from the ground, we're removing him from Hollywood, we're removing him from California, we're removing him from the United States."

The elusive group have given their approval, sharing the article through social media. Clay also recalled an ensuing visit from the Secret Service after he was bailed out of prison.

You can read his entire retelling here.

"The Walk of Fame is a whole boulevard of different people who have lived amazing lives. David Bowie. Marilyn Monroe," Clay added. "Taking Trump's name out of there is very rich and symbolic. I'm sure his ego was torn up about it, considering it's the second time that it's happened. He's like, 'Damn it. Not again.'"

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