Former JUDAS PRIEST singer Tim “Ripper” Owens was asked by The Rock Shop With Ralph if he would ever like to settle down and be in just one band again instead of being involved with so many different projects. He said: “Well, I can’t be in one band. I couldn’t just be in JUDAS PRIEST if they asked me to do it nowadays, unless they were gonna pay me more than they did before.
“I’m a musician,” he continued. “This isn’t the old days. Everybody’s in other bands and other projects and things. I sit at home and make money recording and I make money touring with other people. If I did just one band, I would have to have a regular job, and you wouldn’t see me tour; I wouldn’t have time to tour.
“There’s people out there saying, ‘I wish you did one band [only].’ … Listen, it’d be great if my band was like IRON MAIDEN and we were making that kind of money. Then I would be all right.”
Owens previously told KNAC.COM in a 2019 interview that he approaches every project with the intention of it evolving into a full-fledged band.
“Listen, the goal is always to make something and stick with it,” he said. “It’s funny, because I will have people say to me, ‘Well, I don’t want to buy that record, because I don’t know if it’s going to be a band.’ Well, maybe if you buy the record first, it might become a band. [Laughs] If people say ‘I won’t buy it’ because of this reason or that reason, then the labels are going to say, ‘Never mind.’ [Laughs]”
Owens also repeated that the main reason he is involved with so many different groups is a financial one.
“There’s people that know everything [about] music out there that are always offering me tips on how to run my career,” Owens said. “They’re, like, ‘Tim, you need to be in one band.’ Well, if I were in one band, I would be working a 9-to-5 job 50 hours a week to pay my bills. [Laughs] I’m a musician. This is my job. So if I was a fan of music or of George Lynch, Doug Pinnick, I’d want to get all of their stuff. If Rob Halford put out a solo record, a FIGHT record or a JUDAS PRIEST record, I’d be all over those records. Why? Well, because I’m a fan.”
Tim‘s latest comments echo those he made in a separate interview with All That Shreds. Asked if he would like to stay in one band instead of having multiple projects, or if he likes the diversity of going from project to project, the singer replied: “I would love to stay in one band. Unfortunately, people wouldn’t see me or hear me very often, because I can’t afford to tour like that. I’m not 20 and I have a lot of bills, a lot of commitments. My kids, you know… There’s just no way to do it. Yeah, it would be great to put out a record, but then it would cost me about $30,000 a year just to put [out] a record, so there’s no chance in doing that. This is a really different era.”
He continued: “Listen, I love it. Here’s the thing, if people around the world wanted me to be in one band, then they would buy that record around the world and I wouldn’t have to worry about it. But they don’t buy enough records to support it anyways. So I can’t afford it.
“I make my living as a lead singer, as a musician. Young bands start off and they try to be in one band, but they are young bands who start off not having bills and… You know what I mean? I couldn’t make a living off of what I made in JUDAS PRIEST back then, so that’s just how it is. That’s the way the world is now. It’s totally different. I have to make a pretty good amount of money to make a living.”
Adding that he is “busier” now and he makes “a lot more money ” than he did while he was in PRIEST, Owens reiterated that his lifestyle requires him to be on the road most of the time.
“I’m not saying bad things about JUDAS PRIEST,” he said. “They treated me well and paid me well. It’s just you get older and you have more commitments and you do more things. I do a lot of things and I made a life that I have to be busy. I didn’t make a living on a minimum wage McDonald’s salary. If I did that, I’d probably be better off. [Laughs] I should have probably not set the bar so high.”
Owens is currently in a new band called KK’S PRIEST with ex-JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing, along with guitarist A.J. Mills (HOSTILE), bassist Tony Newton (VOODOO SIX) and drummer Sean Elg (DEATHRIDERS, CAGE).
KK’S PRIEST‘s debut album, “Sermons Of The Sinner”, was released on October 1 via Explorer1 Music Group/EX1 Records.
