In a new interview with Lauren Laverne on BBC Radio 6 Music, Trent Reznor claims that Kanye West and the Weeknd have “ripped off” Nine Inch Nails’ live shows. Reznor begins by discussing his band’s early usage of “screens and experimental production techniques.” He then says, “I remember us watching a string of bands on Coachella from the comfort of our couch. And every band has a video playing behind them. And every band is synced up with a convenient, polite lighting package, you know?" He adds, “And I saw Kanye West blatantly rip off–and the Weeknd rip off– our tours production-wise, which I’ll say without any hesitation. And they know.”

Reznor then discusses how NIN have adapted their live show and their plans for their ongoing tour. He says, “When I think back to the Cure, when I saw them for the first time in the mid-’80s, or Jesus and Mary Chain when we opened for them, and all I remember of that was smoke, maybe a color, a little bit of someone’s hair, and real, real loud guitars. That’s exciting and I don’t see that happening much. So we went the opposite of the arms race we had been in of immersive, technological-based production.... It’s music being played somewhat sloppily with an element of danger and uncertainty and unpredictability.” He continues, “That became the template for what we’re doing now.” The full interview airs tomorrow on BBC 6 Music.

Nine Inch Nails and Kanye have both worked with production designer Martin Phillips (the creator of the iconic Daft Punk pyramid) in the past.

In a 2017 Billboard interview, Sooner Routhier and Robert Long, the Weeknd’s lighting and production designers for his “Starboy: Legend of the Fall” tour, acknowledged Reznor's influence on their work. “We’ve always called [the Weeknd’s] aesthetic the Nine Inch Nails of R&B,” they said. “His music has so many dynamics and the visuals and lighting have to reflect that. But, it still has to be simple.” Routhier added, “I have always looked up to and respected Roy Bennett. His lighting designs for Nine Inch Nails and Prince have inspired me since I was in college.”

Reznor’s remarks about Kanye are not the first that he has made in recent interviews. In a conversation with The Guardian, he said that Kanye’s latest solo album, ye, “sucked.” He added, “The guy’s lost his fucking mind.”

Nine Inch Nails recently released the new record Bad Witch.