Heart’s Nancy Wilson: It’s “Embarrassing” To Be an American Right Now

Heart guitarist Nancy Wilson has reflected on the Vietnam War as an embarrassing time for the United States, but says she’s even more embarrassed to be an American now.

In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nancy discussed the band’s classic 1975 song “Crazy on You,” which she and her sister Ann Wilson wrote in response to the Vietnam War.

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“We were kind of embarrassed at that time to call ourselves American because of the dirty politics of the Vietnam War,” Nancy Wilson said of the song, adding, “To be as subtle as possible, it’s more embarrassing now.”

In the same interview, Nancy also discussed another Heart classic, “Barracuda,” which focused on the misogyny that the sisters experienced back in the ’70s, saying these days the song “is even more relevant in the salacious billionaire culture with the grab-them-by-the-p*ssy mentality.”

However, she has hope that a positive change is coming for women, remarking, “I think for women in the culture, the pendulum will come back again, and there’ll be another renaissance in the arts to push back against the oppression of the cranky old rich white guys. I hope I am alive to see that next revolution.”

Elsewhere, Nancy offered an update on the long-in-the-works biopic on the band, being directed and co-written by Sleater-Kinney singer-guitarist and Portlandia star Carrie Brownstein. We’re getting the ending right now,” revealed Nancy, “and we’re about to cast it.”

Heart are currently in the midst of their “Royal Flush Tour,” which wraps up April 16th at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Six weeks later, the band will embark on their recently announced “An Evening with Heart” tour on May 31st in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Tickets for both tour legs are available here.