Social media can be like the school playground sometimes, especially when it comes to musicians people love, or just love to hate. Gossip makes up one of the largest parts of celebrity news, whether it turns out to be true or not. In celebration of some of the iconic musicians who we’ve all followed throughout our lives, we’ve decided to list our favourite celebrity rumours old and new. Read below to find out some of the juiciest, darkest and outright craziest myths about musicians which either turned out to be true or false.
Ozzy Osbourne – The Bat Bite
It’s a well-known tale that the Prince of Darkness supposedly bit off the head of a live bat on stage during a concert. As much as this story sounds both completely ridiculous and stomach churningly disgusting, the singer said in his memoir that he thought it was a rubber toy but was shocked when his mouth was “instantly full of this warm, gloopy liquid with the worst aftertaste you could ever imagine.“
Verdict: True, unfortunately.
Elvis Presley – Still Alive?
Elvis Presley passed away in his Memphis home back in 1977 but some fans still believe that the iconic Rock & Roll star is still alive and well. Although The National Enquirer published a photo of Presley in his open casket, there are still persistent rumours that The King is still alive to this day with many claiming to have seen him.
Verdict: Unknown, but most likely false.
Avril Lavigne – Replaced by a Double?
The strange rumour that the sk8er girl rock star is, in fact, dead and has been replaced by a look-alike intruder, is one that resurfaces every now and again. Conspiracy theorists claim the title of her second album, Under My Skin, suggested the old Avril was dead and the new one was living under the skin. This was symbolised by the red cross on the cover and the singer’s name in black. Many others put it down to her style and look changing, her height changing and her lyrics becoming seemingly darker.
Verdict: False. It’s an interesting theory but almost certainly untrue.
Keith Richards & Mick Jagger – Mars Bar from the Nether-Region
In 1976, the British police raided the home of Keith Richards in a pursuit to find drugs, but what they did claim to find, was Mick Jagger allegedly eating a Mars Bar out of girlfriend Marianne Faithfull‘s nether-region.
Verdict: Unkown. Although it sounds very Rock & Roll, all parties involved claim it never happened and was a figment of the cop’s imagination.
Marilyn Manson – The Wonder Years
Another look-alike situation on our list leads to Marilyn Manson‘s supposed television performances. Many claimed that Manson played the part of Fred Savage‘s geeky best friend Paul in the sitcom The Wonder Years. It can’t be denied that there is a striking resemblance between the gothic rock star and the character, but the part was actually played by a New York lawyer named Josh Saviano.
Verdict: False. This was just your run of the mill case of mistaken identity.
Lady Gaga – fleshy coloured bump
No one likes the camera catching them at a bad angle. But, for Lady Gaga, this sparked some pretty controversial rumours. In 2009, when she was performing, a snap of the singer showed what appeared to be a flesh coloured bump poking through her dress. Cue the Gaga has a penis conspiracy. The ‘Born This Way‘ singer, however, denied the accusations stating: “I love the rumour that I have a penis.“
Verdict: False. We’re all glad Gaga saw the funny side of this one.
Beyoncé – fake pregnancy
Following a television appearance where Bey’s bump appeared to deflate live on screen, many speculated that she wasn’t pregnant but had enlisted a surrogate to do the job for her. The singer hit back following the accusations stating the rumours weren’t “hurtful… Just crazy.“
Verdict: False – of course she wouldn’t do that, would she?
