Is GODSMACK's New Single 'A Slam' On MÖTLEY CRÜE's NIKKI SIXX?

According to HardDrive Radio, the lyrics to GODSMACK's new single, "Cryin' Like a Bitch", were written by the band's frontman, Sully Erna, as "a slam on Nikki Sixx" of MÖTLEY CRÜE. It should be noted, however, that this information has not yet been publicly confirmed by the GODSMACK singer.

Erna revealed in a 2009 interview that last summer's Crüe Fest 2 — MÖTLEY CRÜE's travelling festival — turned out to be "the most dramatic tour" GODSMACK has ever been on, with the kind of "rock-star garbage" on the part of the tour's headliners that Erna and his bandmates had "never seen [before] in [their] career."

When asked what is was like for GODSMACK off stage on Crüe Fest 2, Erna told the Artisan News Service, "I will tell you, it's been the most dramatic tour we've ever been on. I mean, talk about just craziness, man. Sometimes egos run high, man, and there's definitely been some rock-star garbage on this tour that just have never seen in our career. Every band — from BLACK SABBATH to AEROSMITH, RUSH, METALLICA... you name it... They've always... I don't think there was ever a threat, you know what I mean?! Like who's gonna dwarf METALLICA anyways? But there's always just been this mutual kind of like, 'We wanna put on a great show, so bring your bells and whistles, bring your show, so between you guys and us, we can make these people get a bang for their buck.' And that's really what entertainment has always been about. And so, I've never been in a position before where we felt we had to really protect this thing; it's kind of like a dog with a bone — you put us up against a wall and we're gonna come out swinging."

When asked whether MÖTLEY CRÜE might have been acting out of ego competition between Crüe Fest 2 bands or living up to previous travelling tours like Ozzfest, Erna replied, "I don't know who needs to live up to whose reputations and I don't know why some people consider music as a competition, but I will tell you that I have never been in a situation where I felt like I was out for blood, and honestly, this was the first time that I felt like, 'You know what?! If there's gonna be some people that are gonna treat other people a certain way, then I'm gonna go out there every night and fucking crush you on stage — make sure that we make you look old and fat, and go home with a nice big fat paycheck. You can sit in your world and I'll sit in mine, and [I'll] see you at the top again, I guess, somewhere...' I don't know. All I care about, really, is playing music and enjoying myself on the road. I'm not here to compete. Everybody has their fans, everybody has their own music, and it's supposed to be more like a brotherhood, but... I don't know. It's been a good time for us out here, but in other situations, there's definitely been some uncomfortable moments."

Watch video footage of Sully Erna talking about Crüe Fest 2 at this location.

In a December 2009 interview with the Artisan News Service, MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee was asked for his comment on Erna's remarks. "I don't know too much about that," he replied. "Sully and I are good friends. I think he just had some issues with the way he was treated by somebody else in the organization. But I'm gonna stay right out of that. [chuckles]"

Video footage of Tommy Lee talking about GODSMACK and Crüe Fest 2 can be viewed below.

"Cryin' Like A Bitch" audio stream (radio-broadcast-quality recording):

"Cryin' Like A Bitch" lyrics:

Strut on by like a king
Telling everybody they know nothing
Long lived what you thought you were
Time ain't on your side anymore

And so you tell me I can't take my chances
But I've told you one too many times
And you were cryin' like a bitch

I'm tougher than nails, I can promise you that
Step outta line and you'll get bitch-slapped back
And you can run your little mouth all day
But the hand of god just smacked you back into yesterday

And so you tell me I can't take my chances
But I've told you one too many times
And you were cryin' like a bitch
And you wonder why no one can stand you
There's no denying you were cryin' like a bitch

Blinded by your sacred faded past times, only time is your enemy
Granted a second chance to prove that your arrogance is
Stronger than you'll ever be… it's stronger than you can be [/End of lyrics]

"Crying Like A Bitch" will appear on GODSMACK's new album "The Oracle", which is reportedly scheduled for a May 4 release. The group's fifth studio effort follows up 2006's "IV" and a nearly two-year hiatus that ended last summer when GODSMACK joined the Crüe Fest 2 tour. Other new songs include "War & Peace", "Devil's Swing" and "Whiskey Hangover", which the band issued as a single last summer.