When Simon Le Bon Realized Duran Duran Had No Street Credibility

Duran Duran singer Simon Le Bon recalled the moment back in the ‘80s when he realized that his band had no street credibility.

That realization is one of the reason’s he’s happy to lead them through their annual Halloween shows – even though he’s not a fan of the holiday himself.

“I remember being in a taxi with John [Taylor] after one of our first rehearsals, talking about stuff,” Le Bon told the Guardian in a recent interview.

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“I’d been in a rock band and a punk band before called Dog Days, and I said: ‘But John, what about street credibility?’ And John said: ‘Simon, Duran Duran’s got about as much street credibility as Chanel No 19.’ And, at that point, I thought: ‘OK, I’ll go with that.’”

The band first staged a Halloween show in 2022. This year’s event takes place at the O2 in London, UK. “The thing is, I don’t give a f––k what people think about me,” Le Bon stated. “I’m not talking for the whole band – I’m sure some of them do care – but me, I just do what I do, and that’s all it is.”

He continued: “[I’m] not a fan of Halloween. I think it’s become just a sort of marketing thing.” However, he happily joined in the fun: “At the first one I was a werewolf… next one, I was like the ghost of a north Atlantic convoy sea captain. Another time I was a kind of cross between Mad Max and a mummy, but I also had this one scene where I was determined to wear antlers, like a druid god.

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“And last time I was sort of aiming for something but it fell a bit short: I was a jellyfish, but it ended up looking like … I was going to say something off RuPaul’s Drag Race, but I’d be flattering myself. This time, I want to do something like Shiva the Destroyer.”

Duran Duran Always Had a Silly Side

Bandmate Nick Rhodes argued that, despite their ‘80s image, Duran Duran had always displayed a streak of humor. “I think it was missed by some people,” he said. “But we grew up with Monty Python and [John Cleese sitcom] Fawlty Towers and all of those amazing ‘70s British TV shows and so, inevitably, that was part of what we were doing.

“It doesn’t mean we were going to put it into songs – I guess we weren’t ever going to write ‘The Laughing Gnome’ – but at the same time, you know, the videos are filled with humor. Watch ‘A View to a Kill’ or ‘Rio.’ It’s there.”