System of a Down guitarist Daron Malakian took to social media to confirm that, yes, iconic actress Glenn Close was once indeed the drummer for the band… definitely.
“Bet you didn’t know!!!!Bet you didn’t know!!!!!” Malakian’s post read, in a reference to SOAD’s song “Violent Pornography.” “Somewhere between our first drummer [Ontronik Khachaturian] and John [Dolmayan], Glenn Close was tearing shit up on the drums for us!!!!!!”
This little factoid sprung to life last night at the annual Golden of a Globes… sorry, I mean, Golden Globes awards ceremony, where comedian host Nikki Glaser introduced Close as follows: “From Netflix's Back in Action, three-time Golden Globe Award winner, Hollywood icon and former drummer for System of a Down, Glenn Close!”
Glaser slipped this joke in as part of her introduction for Close to present the Best Picture award in the drama category, according to Loudwire. The line, combined with Malakian’s “yes, and” confirmation, has left some SOAD fans a little bewildered online.
“How does something like this happen?” asked user mindseedmusic in a comment on Malakian’s post.
In a Reddit post on r/systemofadown, user u/HowlxdPendragon asked fellow fans for clarification on what Glaser had said.
“I just watched the Golden Globes and saw the post from Daron on insta saying that Glenn Close was a former drummer for SOAD between their first drummer and John,” the Reddit post read. “Anybody knows what's up with that?”
For many fans, this has also been an exciting moment seeing such a beloved nu metal act receive homage from the world of film. Some users took the torch Malakian passed and added to the bit in their own way.
“True. The iconic drum part in Toxicity was a Glenn Creation [sic],” commented user dibuitre on Malakian’s post.
“I heard she co-wrote Old School Hollywood right after [Khachaturian] left, but they didn't release it until years after she left the band,” commented user jhodak.
Khachaturian popped up in the post’s comments as well, feigning confusion about a different part altogether of Malakian’s statement: “Who’s this first drummer guy 😂”