Corey Taylor was one of the first acts to return to the road this year, employing COVID safety protocols in order to play for audiences amidst the ongoing pandemic. Now, in a new chat with Heavy Consequence (seen below), Taylor has shared his thoughts on the current struggles to get the American population vaccinated despite the vaccine being readily available and COVID cases once again rising primarily among the unvaccinated.

The singer commented that part of the issue is how getting vaccinated has become a political talking point. He explains, “People act like getting a vaccine is signing a deal with the devil. It’s been so politicized and spun out of control in these conspiratorial echo chambers that people forget that you can go find all the info you want online to educate yourself about everything about these vaccines.”

Taylor continued, “The fact that [vaccines] have been demonized, almost to the point of these gnarly conspiracy theories, no wonder why people are afraid of it — because they’re listening to the wrong people.”

The vocalist also addressed the idea of concerts returning and whether or not people should be required to show proof of vaccination in order to attend. “Do I think it should be a requirement for people to be vaccinated to go to shows? Yes and no," he stated before explaining, "Here’s the thing: there shouldn’t be a mandate, but guess what, man, if you’re going to put people at risk of getting sick, you shouldn’t want to go to a show. That’s common sense. And if you do put people at risk, then you’re a fuckin’ asshole. And you shouldn’t be let in anyway. So, for me, it’s a common sense thing, but we don’t have a lot of common sense these days, man.”

According to the CDC at press time, 342,212,051 vaccines had been administered in the U.S. with just shy of 57 percent of the country receiving at least one dose and just over 49 percent being vaccinated with two doses. On July 26, there were 53,772 new COVID cases reported in the U.S.

In 48 states, the rate of new COVID-19 cases this past week jumped by at least 10 percent compared to the previous week, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. In 34 of those states, the rate of new cases increased by more than 50 percent. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky stated last week that more than 97 percent of those hospitalized with COVID-19 were unvaccinated.

Taylor will be back on the road in August in support of his 2020 CMFT solo album. The trek launches Aug. 6 at the House of Blues in Las Vegas, with the brief run concluding Aug. 19 at Denver's Ogden Theatre. For a list of all stops and ticketing information, visit Taylor's website.

Corey Taylor Speaks With Heavy Consequence About Vaccines

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