In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, SYSTEM OF A DOWN bassist Shavo Odadjian revisited the long-discussed 2007 altercation involving MASTODON’s then-vocalist/guitarist Brent Hinds. While both parties have long since moved on, rumors and misconceptions about Odadjian’s role in the incident continue to circulate.
According to reports, the altercation occurred shortly after the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, involving Hinds and rapper Rev. William Burk, who was at the event with Odadjian.
A police report from the incident identified Hinds as the instigator but initially claimed that both Burk and Odadjian had struck him during the fight. The confrontation left Hinds seriously injured—suffering brain hemorrhaging, a broken nose, black eyes, and even falling into a coma that required weeks of recovery.
Despite years of being downplayed by MASTODON and Hinds, Odadjian is again clarifying his role.
“I never knocked out Brent Hinds,” Odadjian says. “That’s something that Brent was told by I-don’t-know-who. What happened was, we were in Las Vegas, outside Mandalay Bay after the MTV Music Awards, and I was with my friend, Reverend William Burk. Brent Hinds comes out of a taxi and he’s like, ‘Bro, I love you!’ He was inebriated and swinging his shirt. He kept coming up to hug me. He was very in-my-face.”
Odadjian stated that after leaving for a taxi, he witnessed Hinds throw a punch at Burk, who retaliated in what Odadjian considered self-defense.
“Brent fell and hit his head and got knocked out. I was five, six feet away,” Shavo added.
Source: metaladdicts.com
