"Hit them in the only place they hurt or nothing will ever get done"

Ethel Cain has shared her thoughts on the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, saying that while she wasn’t being “reactionary”, violence was “sometimes” the answer, while using the hashtag “KillMoreCEOs”.

Healthcare boss Thompson was shot dead outside a Manhattan hotel last December, with the killer remaining at large for several days afterwards. The suspect, initially described as a white man wearing a mask, fled the scene.

The police later arrested lead suspect Luigi Mangione at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania after an employee recognised him from New York Police Department images. A three-page manifesto was found in his possession, in which he criticised the American healthcare system.

In a series of Instagram Story posts made yesterday (January 10), the ‘Punish‘ musician also expressed frustration with the system, having only recently called American politics a “breeding ground for violent hatred”.

Cain initially shared a post by Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, which lambasted powerful collectives like the NRA (National Rifle Association), “Big Oil” and insurance companies who were able to “buy off Congress”.

 

In a follow-up story, Cain shared her perspective, writing: “Not even trying to be reactionary or “edgy” or say this shit for shock value, i genuinely mean what i say. corporations giggle at protesting.

“why would anyone ever willingly come down off their throne that they’ve spent years building off the suffering of their fellow man? nobody is getting visited by the ghost of christmas future, no one is having a change of heart.”

She went on to say “it” – being provoking change – was simple, “You make them fear for their lives and hit them in the only place they hurt or nothing will ever get done,” and questioned why that was a “radical” idea.

Ethel Cain performing live on stage
Ethel Cain performs live. CREDIT: Burak Cingi/Redferns/Getty

“It seems quite straightforward to me,” she wrote. “‘Violence is never the answer’ wrong. sometimes it is.” She concluded in a final story by adding: “The world is burning and it’s very clear who’s holding the matches.”

As for Mangione, he has dominated headlines in recent months and developed somewhat of a cult following online, with his supporters either engaging more seriously with his political beliefs and positioning him as a “folk hero”, or more simply dubbing him a “hot assassin” who is “husband” material.

Since his arrest, Mangione has become an internet meme phenomenon, with variations of “#FreeLuigi” posted on X/Twitter over 50,000 times (per BBC News), with two documentaries about him already in the works.

Back in December, Chris Rock made a joke about Thompson’s death in his monologue. During his fourth stint as Saturday Night Live (SNL) host, he touched on the internets reaction to Mangione.

“Everybody’s fixated on how good-looking this guy looks,” he said. “If he looked like Jonah Hill, no one would care. They’d already given him the chair already.”

He continued: “But he actually killed a man, a man! A man with a family, a man with kids… I have real condolences for the Healthcare CEO…but you also gotta know, sometimes drug dealers get shot.”

50 Cent is happy to get a little shout-out from Taylor Swift. On Friday, hours after Swift released The Life of a Showgirl, the rapper shared his excitement over the pop queen mentioning his name on “Ruin the Friendship,” Track Six on her new album.

“@taylorswift shit is popping right now, she shout me out, she don’t shout you out,” 50 Cent wrote on Instagram alongside the LP’s cover. “LOL THIS IS FOR BIG TIMERS ONLY!”

He added: “Wait I’m the only shout out on the whole album.”

On the song, Swift looks back on a teenage romance and the regret of not kissing someone despite knowing it would’ve been worth the risk. “And it was not an invitation/But as the 50 Cеnt song played/Should’ve kissed you anyway,” she sings on the track looking back at prom night. “And it was not convenient, no/Would’ve been the best mistake/Should’ve kissed you anyway, hey.”

While Swift has not explained the meaning or inspiration behind the song “Ruin the Friendship,” fans have speculated that the track is about Jeffrey Lang, whom Swift has spoken about being close to while they went to Hendersonville High School. Lang died at age 21 in November 2010.

“Yesterday, I sang at the funeral of one of my best friends,” she said at the 2010 BMI Country Music Awards shortly after his death. “And he was 21, and I used to play my songs for him first. So I would like to thank Jeff Lang.”

50 Cent isn’t actually the only shout-out on the album, however. Elsewhere on the record, “Elizabeth Taylor” is titled after the glamorous Hollywood icon of the 1950s, Swift mentions Spanish soccer team Real Madrid on “Wi$h Li$t,” and the star seemingly dedicated an entire song to Charli XCX, titled “Actually Romantic.”

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