Who was Mojo Nixon? Ohio to designate June 11 as 'Mojo Nixon Day' in honor of late rock artist

The Ohio House of Representatives has recently decided to designate June 11 as 'Mojo Nixon Day' to honor the late American rock artist, as reported by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame website. Along with this, a proclamation will also be delivered to Nixon's family for the contributions that he made to the music culture.

Mojo Nixon, who had been a long-time resident of Ohio, passed away this year on February 7 due to a cardiac event. American musician and actor, also known as Neill Kirby McMillan Jr, has been known for his popular novelty songs Elvis Is Everywhere, UFOs, and others.

On June 7, 2024, Billboard reported a statement given by Scott Ambrose Reilly, who had also managed the rock artist for a long time. According to Reilly:

"Mojo would’ve loved the idea he was one of few things Democrats and Republicans could agree on."

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Mojo Nixon's life and career explored

Mojo Nixon, the famous rock artist, who passed away in February this year, had been honored after Ohio decided to dedicate a day of the year to him. Born in 1957 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Nixon's genre could be identified as psychobilly, a fusion genre of rock music, mixing elements of punk rock, rockabilly, and others.

The artist further attended school in Ohio and then traveled to England. Nixon's dad owned a radio station, which primarily focused on soul music. He began his musical journey by playing in a punk band in Denver. As per Variety in an interview for the 2020 career-spanning boxed set, "The Mojo Manifesto", Nixon said:

"I’m gonna take roots music and I’m gonna infuse it with the energy and excitement of punk rock."

At the beginning of his career, Nixon paired up with Skid Roper in San Diego. In 1985, Enigma Records released the duo's first album Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper. Elvis Is Everywhere was also a track that Mojo Nixon released while he was still with Roper. Nixon's music was often considered to be quite profane in nature. In a 1990 interview with The New York Times, Nixon said,

"I’m a rabble-rouser who does humorous social commentary within a rock ’n’ roll setting."

He later also described him as the voice of "the doomed, the damned, the weird." Nixon told The New York Times that he had come up with his stage name while drinking at a bar. In 1989, after Mojo Nixon separated ways with Skid Roper, the former decided to drop his solo album Otis, the very next year in 1990.

Nixon also included a quite controversial song in the album, Don Henley Must Die, for which the record label had to plead with radio stations to avoid playing it. Since then, Nixon has released several studio albums like Whereabouts Unknown and Whiskey Rebellion.

Along with music, Nixon had also been a part of several films including Car 54, Where Are You?, Super Mario Bros., and A Four Course Meal.

Mojo Nixon, (Photo by Ed Rode/Getty Images)

Variety reported that Nixon focused on doing local gigs on radio in San Diego and Cincinnati, before getting a job at SiriusXM in 2005. The outlet further reported a statement issued by the late rock artist, where he said:

"I don’t have that much talent, but what I do have is an enormous amount of enthusiasm. As Mr. Rotten used to call it, 'An unlimited supply!!!'"

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Mojo Nixon reportedly loved music since he was a teenager

After Nixon passed away on February 7, SiriusXM paid tribute to the late artist for several days. In 2017, the artist spoke about his passion and love for music in an exclusive conversation with SiriusXM. In the interview, he added:

"I am immersed in hillbilly rock ‘n’ roll. Outlaw Country is where country and rock ‘n’ roll come together with a very bad attitude. If you’ve ever seen that picture of Johnny Cash when he’s giving the finger — that’s Outlaw Country in a nutshell."

Nixon recalled how much he loved music from his teenage years. While the rock artist retired in 2004, he was seen occasionally performing SXSW and the Outlaw Country Cruise. This was shortly before joining SiriusXM. In the same conversation, the artist continued:

"Spreading the love of hillbilly rock ‘n’ roll,” he said. “If it’s too rock ‘n’ roll for a hillbilly and too hillbilly for rock ‘n’ roll, and it’s got a bad attitude, we’re playing it on Outlaw Country, and it feels good!"

Nixon was best known for his outspoken and satirical lyrics. In 2017, he explained how he wanted to be a figure who couldn't possibly be remembered in movies and schools. However, he wanted to be someone who would be remembered as a "wild and free" person on the outskirts of the town.