MT: I know you stepped out of the limelight for a number of years to raise your sons. I heard you once went off on someone for swearing in front of your kids. Is that true?

Clay: Yeah, I did. That's where adults are stupid, they just will use any language today around anybody. When I'm offstage, I actually don't really curse that much.

MT: What's interesting to me is that some of the raunchiest, most politically incorrect comedians out there now are women — Sarah Silverman, Kathy Griffin, Lisa Lampanelli — and they're talking about a lot of the same topics that you talked about back in the day. What do you think about that?

Clay: Well, I think I busted down the doors for everybody else. It's great that they're out there doing it. It's like when Elvis came along, there were groups that were trying to stop him from shaking his hips, but he opened the doors for real rock 'n' roll all the way to today. There wouldn't have been a Led Zeppelin, a Guns N' Roses without Elvis. It's like with rap. If the Sugarhill Gang hadn't come out with "Rapper's Delight," today we wouldn't have Pitbull, Diddy, Eminem. Speaking of Eminem, he should come to the show.

MT: Since you brought up Eminem, is it true that you were almost signed to Shady Records?

Clay: Yeah, that's true. We met a couple of times and back then I didn't have the heat I'd had in the early '90s, but he wanted to produce seven albums for me. He came over to my house, we had a barbecue, he's just the greatest guy and the No. 1 rapper in the world.

Andrew Dice Clay performs at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 24, at the Andiamo Celebrity Showroom, 7096 E. 14 Mile Rd., Warren; 586-268-3200; andiamoshowroom.com; $25-$75.

Jason Webber is a freelance writer. Send comments to letters@metrotimes.com.

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