Billy Corgan says being open about his Christian faith matters more to him than the potential consequences for his career. The Smashing Pumpkins frontman discussed that decision with Stryper’s Michael Sweet during the September 23, 2026, episode of The Magnificent Others, connecting his beliefs to the honesty he feels he owes listeners.
Corgan told Sweet that he had deliberately chosen to discuss God and his belief in Jesus, despite feeling that musicians of his generation rarely approached the subject openly. He recalled telling Rolling Stone that talking about God could be professionally hazardous in rock music. Even if speaking about his faith hurt him, he said, keeping that part of himself out of the conversation would leave fans with an incomplete understanding of who he was.
“If I can’t be willing to be honest with who I am, well, what am I asking a fan to believe in?” Corgan said.
Sweet’s experience with Stryper gave that discussion a practical context. The singer considered whether the band might have achieved greater commercial success without its explicitly Christian message. Corgan agreed that it was possible, while acknowledging that neither musician could know how that alternative career would have unfolded. He praised the band for making its beliefs part of its identity and following through on them.
The conversation also addressed what Corgan sees as a gap between popular music and the lives of its listeners. He argued that Christianity remains deeply rooted in American culture, including among people who grew up in Christian communities but no longer attend church.
Christianity is “part of the fabric of the nation whether people like it or not,” he said.
From that perspective, Corgan criticized the prominence of vice in popular music. He argued that the imbalance reflected artists’ behavior more than everyday reality, and described a business that rewards people willing to follow whatever is popular.
Corgan also said discussing his own beliefs did not mean he considered himself a preacher. Sweet described a similar change in Stryper’s approach: the band had once placed more emphasis on preaching between songs and after performances, but he now preferred to let the music communicate its message. He said pushing people too hard could drive them away from faith.
