Last Night On
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Saturday Night Live: Why did System of a Down get banned?

By Matt Moore

LOS ANGELES - JULY 1999 : (EDITORS NOTE: THIS IMAGE WAS CREATED USING COLOR INFRA RED FILM) American rock band with Armenian roots,System of a Down, (lead vocalist Serj Tankian, drummer John Dolmayan, guitarist Daron Malakian and bassist Shavo Odadjian pose for a July 1998 portrait in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bob Berg/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - JULY 1999 : (EDITORS NOTE: THIS IMAGE WAS CREATED USING COLOR INFRA RED FILM) American rock band with Armenian roots,System of a Down, (lead vocalist Serj Tankian, drummer John Dolmayan, guitarist Daron Malakian and bassist Shavo Odadjian pose for a July 1998 portrait in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bob Berg/Getty Images) /
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Saturday Night Live has spent nearly 50 years inviting the biggest names in entertainment to Studio 8H. However, some leave a less-than-stellar impression and end up on SNL’s banned list. Here’s why System of a Down is banned from Saturday Night Live.

The recent passing of Sinead O’Connor led many to reminisce about the singer’s controversial performance on Saturday Night Live. But the Irish singer isn’t the only musical guest to get on SNL’s bad side after a politically-motivated stunt.

Heavy metal band System of a Down arrived at SNL in 2005 as the musical guest alongside host Johnny Knoxville. The band intended to play their song “B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Bombs).” The song took aim at the Iraq War and made the band’s anti-war stance very clear.

SNL never shies away from political commentary, but there are still lines the show can’t cross. That includes profanity. System of a Down’s song continues multiple uses of the F-word. It became a point of contention between SNL and the band. In the end, the show relented and allowed the band to perform the song. NBC would use the five-second delay to ensure every use of “f***” was bleeped. Unfortunately, System of a Down didn’t fully cooperate.

Why System of a Down got banned from Saturday Night Live

Just when Saturday Night Live thought they were in the clear following System of a Down’s performance, things went sideways. Guitarist Daron Malakian managed to get a “f*** yeah!” into the microphones before the show cut away.

The censors couldn’t move quickly enough and the profanity was broadcast to the millions of viewers watching at home. While it’s not exactly the worst thing that could happen on live television, it was still enough to get System of a Down banned from Saturday Night Live.

The comedy show created and produced by Lorne Michaels has a surprisingly strict policy on improvisation. It may seem out of place for a comedy show, but Michaels has made it clear that he doesn’t want to be surprised by anything that comes from the mouth of a cast member, host, or musical guest.

So when Malakian intentionally let an F-bomb fly, it was enough to get System of a Down banned from Saturday Night Live.

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