In defense of partying.

• Author: Gillespie, Nick
• Position: Soundbite - Conversation with Andrew W.K. - Interview

Musician Andrew W.K. has been called "the great unwashed rock star" and "the great god of partying." His best-known songs include "Party Hard" and "We Want Fun." In June, he lectured at the Oxford Union on the topic "Andrew W.K. and the Philosophy of Partying." He delighted a generation of children as the host of Destroy Build Destroy, a live-action Cartoon Network series in which teams of kids compete for the right to blow up each other's creations. He's a regular on Fox News' late night show Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld and an advice columnist for The Village Voice. In October, Reason TV's Nick Gillespie sat down to talk with Andrew W.K. about his life's work and his unabashed libertinism.

Q: What's up with the party?

A: Out of all the things I could imagine spending my time doing, I figure if I was going to devote myself to a mission, or dedicate my life to a cause, it should bean enjoyable one. And partying was the most fun thing I could think of--and also that other people could relate to.

Q: Were you walking down the street and almost got hit by a falling safe, or something?

A: Full of pinatas and party favors?

Q: Yeah.

A: No. Unfortunately. That would have been much more dramatic, but also painful, so I'm glad it didn't involve injury. No. I moved to New York when I was 18 ... I decided not to go to college and moved to the biggest city I could think of and try to do something big. From that emerged a lot of confusion, a lot of disappointments, a lot of dead-end jobs and sort of oddball experiences. Then at one point I got this idea that I could cheer myself up and maybe cheer other people up. That was really the reason I wanted to do something fun.

Q: Were you in a depressed state?

A: Yes.

Q: What was the nature of that? A kind of coming-of-age dislocation? A chemical imbalance?

A: Probably a mixture of all of those things. Anything that felt bad, I...