My friend's band, Mifuné, an afro-beat-based fusion/funk band (think Stereolab meets world music), got cut off at the Tri-C Jazz Fest on Saturday in downtown Cleveland. Here's the story from the Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Personally, I think it's real shitty... as did congressman Dennis Kucinich, who wrote the Tower City management a letter of complaint. It's too bad their debut CD hasn't dropped yet, because they couldn't have paid for that kind of publicity. :)
Tower City shuts off band for political T-shirts
Saturday, April 29, 2006 - Michael Sangiacomo - Plain Dealer Reporter
A band wearing anti-President Bush T-shirts was silenced in mid-performance at Tower City Friday because the mall's management felt the band's attire was inappropriate.
Mifuné, an Afro-beat band, was performing as part of the Tri-C JazzFest when the sound was cut off about 20 minutes into the set on orders from Tower City management.
"They didn't like that all the band members wore a T-shirt with a picture of George Bush with a line through it," said band leader Jacob Fader, 28, of Cleveland Heights. "They said we either remove the shirts, turn them inside out, or get off the stage. I said that doing so would be against our core principles and free speech. We told the audience what happened from the stage after the microphones were cut. The crowd booed."
A spokesman for Tower City confirmed the action.
"We felt the band's attire was distracting and inappropriate," said Lisa Kreiger, Tower City general manager. "We welcome all the musical groups from the festival. The purpose of the show was to provide musical entertainment."
Tri-C JazzFest Managing Director Beth Rutkowski said she stood by the actions of Tower City.
Fader said that the sound was cut off during "Supercrush," which he described as a "song about how the Bush administration separates the wealth, causing the elimination of the middle class."
He said the band has several political songs in its repertoire.
Fader said that security officers were brought in to keep order among the murmuring crowd that had gathered near the Tower City water fountain.
"When my father started to say that it was wrong to silence us, a security cop told him to shut up," Fader said. "My dad said he had the right to free speech and the security guy said, 'Not in here you don't.' "
Fader said what happened Friday is one of the reasons the band performs wearing anti-Bush T-shirts.
"This is indicative of what's going on in this country," he said. "They are stopping free speech, If it were up to Bush, things like the Tri-C JazzFest would not exist. This proves our point."
Saturday, April 29, 2006 - Michael Sangiacomo - Plain Dealer Reporter
A band wearing anti-President Bush T-shirts was silenced in mid-performance at Tower City Friday because the mall's management felt the band's attire was inappropriate.
Mifuné, an Afro-beat band, was performing as part of the Tri-C JazzFest when the sound was cut off about 20 minutes into the set on orders from Tower City management.
"They didn't like that all the band members wore a T-shirt with a picture of George Bush with a line through it," said band leader Jacob Fader, 28, of Cleveland Heights. "They said we either remove the shirts, turn them inside out, or get off the stage. I said that doing so would be against our core principles and free speech. We told the audience what happened from the stage after the microphones were cut. The crowd booed."
A spokesman for Tower City confirmed the action.
"We felt the band's attire was distracting and inappropriate," said Lisa Kreiger, Tower City general manager. "We welcome all the musical groups from the festival. The purpose of the show was to provide musical entertainment."
Tri-C JazzFest Managing Director Beth Rutkowski said she stood by the actions of Tower City.
Fader said that the sound was cut off during "Supercrush," which he described as a "song about how the Bush administration separates the wealth, causing the elimination of the middle class."
He said the band has several political songs in its repertoire.
Fader said that security officers were brought in to keep order among the murmuring crowd that had gathered near the Tower City water fountain.
"When my father started to say that it was wrong to silence us, a security cop told him to shut up," Fader said. "My dad said he had the right to free speech and the security guy said, 'Not in here you don't.' "
Fader said what happened Friday is one of the reasons the band performs wearing anti-Bush T-shirts.
"This is indicative of what's going on in this country," he said. "They are stopping free speech, If it were up to Bush, things like the Tri-C JazzFest would not exist. This proves our point."
Personally, I think it's real shitty... as did congressman Dennis Kucinich, who wrote the Tower City management a letter of complaint. It's too bad their debut CD hasn't dropped yet, because they couldn't have paid for that kind of publicity. :)
because the mall's management felt the band's attire was inappropriate.
Not Congress. What's the point?
From: Syntax Error - "If there's anything governments truly hate, it's people being free."
Date: 5/1/06 @ 9:30 AM
3
It wasnt the government that stopped free speech. It was a private organization who sponsored the event and didnt want to be connected with that kind of political sentiment.
Move along. Nothing to see here folks.
Move along. Nothing to see here folks.
If they're putting on the concert they can decide who plays.
"This is indicative of what's going on in this country," he said. "They are stopping free speech, If it were up to Bush, things like the Tri-C JazzFest would not exist. This proves our point."
Fader is a moron. "They" are not related to Bush.
Show me your papers!
the band changed their shirts and took the money didn't they?
THey are there to perform... it's not a political performance.
THey are there to perform... it's not a political performance.
maybe if they concentrated more on their music and less on politics, I might have heard of them.
Land of the free......... what a fucking joke.
Invade and encompass to judge and dissect
Witness and persecute to serve and protect
To serve, and to protect to serve
To serve, and to protect to serve
Watchful and aware, contrain every movement
Admit the consequences, freedom's an illusion
Where is security governed through scrutiny?
Your privacy denied, organized and confined!
No place to hide!
No place to hide!
There is no place to hide
Plugged in your mind
Conformed design
To concede your rights
Concede your mind
Surrender to authority
"All must abide and all must adhere"
Future opression becoming more clear
This is a warning so you must take heed
This coming vision is reality
Where is security governed through scrutiny?
Your privacy denied, organized and confined!
No place to hide
No place to hide...
Witness and persecute to serve and protect
To serve, and to protect to serve
To serve, and to protect to serve
Watchful and aware, contrain every movement
Admit the consequences, freedom's an illusion
Where is security governed through scrutiny?
Your privacy denied, organized and confined!
No place to hide!
No place to hide!
There is no place to hide
Plugged in your mind
Conformed design
To concede your rights
Concede your mind
Surrender to authority
"All must abide and all must adhere"
Future opression becoming more clear
This is a warning so you must take heed
This coming vision is reality
Where is security governed through scrutiny?
Your privacy denied, organized and confined!
No place to hide
No place to hide...
Ok, so they're performing on private property and the owners of said private property decided they didn't like what they were wearing? What's the big deal? It's the property owners right to decide what's allowed on his/her property.
Shitty but still okay.
Damn the man.
Damn the man.
Land of the free......... what a fucking joke.
They are still alive and not in jail. rare except in the US
Stupid but legal and fine.
Private property, private function.
This is not a violation of rights or authoritarianizm by the Bush brigade.
As has been said move along, nothing to see here.
Private property, private function.
This is not a violation of rights or authoritarianizm by the Bush brigade.
As has been said move along, nothing to see here.
yea.. if they were really violated.. they wouldn't have taken the performance pay.
but they did didn't they?
but they did didn't they?
i love the little bands that whine about politics; they are my favorite.
song about how the Bush administration separates the wealth, causing the elimination of the middle class."
That's the dumbest thing I've read in a long time.
Don't want to be told to shut up? Don't show up and try to flaunt your political views in a public entertainment setting. Just because celebrities do it, doesn't make it fine or even cool. It's rather annoying. If I want to know where you stand, I'll ask you. Otherwise, play the music and let your lifestyle speak for you.
There's a difference between legal and "right" though. The point is that people should be able to express their political views in what is basically a public forum... it's not like they were shouting "fuck Bush" or anything... they were just wearing tshirts. I mean, if they were in the mall with placards or something, fine... I get it... but they were playing music and entertaining people as they were expected to do. Just seems a little harsh to cut off a show because you disagree with someone's politics.
It's not harsh. They have every right not to be associated with something they don't like.
I can see where you're coming from, but it seemed like a concerted effort, with all of them wearing that kind of shirt. If it had been just one or even a couple, it'd be different, but the fact that they got together and said, "This is how we're going to show everyone how awful Bush is" just annoys the piss out of me and most other people.
They didn't like that all the band members wore a T-shirt with a picture of George Bush with a line through it," said band leader Jacob Fader, 28, of Cleveland Heights. "They said we either remove the shirts, turn them inside out, or get off the stage. I said that doing so would be against our core principles and free speech. We told the audience what happened from the stage after the microphones were cut. The crowd booed."
Thats great that these guys have core principles, too bad they dont care about the principles of others. What kind of ignorant kid do you have to be to do that. Its a mall! The mall has core principles also, its called making money. Making certain groups of people feel uncomfortable at their mall is not going to work.
Once again ignorant sef righteous punks.
people should be able to express their political views in what is a public forum, not what is basically a public forum. Is it shitty that it happened? Sure. But there is nothing wrong with it.
It's too bad your friends got dissed at their big break, playing for a crowd of tens of people at the local mall.
I'm sure they have a promising future in fast food.
I'm sure they have a promising future in fast food.
Seems odd that they would have been asked to perform at all without anyone actually listening to their music and knowing that the music was going to be political. Seems even more strange that security would be more worried about the shirts than the lyrics if the shirts didn't say "FUCK BUSH!" or something on them.
If I were the band or a fan of them I'd be pissed off too, but the store hosting the concert did have the right to cut them off if they wanted to...
If I were the band or a fan of them I'd be pissed off too, but the store hosting the concert did have the right to cut them off if they wanted to...
haha... Tower City isn't that big either
Sure it seems kinda silly and there was too big of a deal made out of it, but I'd argue that it was a private forum and any bands invited to play are subject to the wishes of the organizers. My guess is that neither the festival nor the venue wish to be associated with any particular political view.
Surely there would be a more appropriate setting to wear shirts in protest of the President/Administration/war than a festival where the focus seems to be on the music.
It's great publicity for your friend's band, though.
Surely there would be a more appropriate setting to wear shirts in protest of the President/Administration/war than a festival where the focus seems to be on the music.
It's great publicity for your friend's band, though.
malls are notorious for not wanting people to stand still.
they want people constantly moving, and maxing out credit cards
on expensive shit they don't need.
they want muzak.
i don't know how your friends thought they were going to change that.
they want people constantly moving, and maxing out credit cards
on expensive shit they don't need.
they want muzak.
i don't know how your friends thought they were going to change that.
To be clear, this wasn't in the mall... this was a riverfront concert venue, and part of a large annual music festival. So yes, the venue is partially owned by the mall, but they were hosting an event run by a third-party who knew exactly what type of band they had hired. It just seems silly for them to go so far as to shut down the show simply because the management didn't like the tshirts... the audience didn't seem to care.
If I hired some landscapers to come do my yardwork and they showed up wearing some stupid shirts, I'd probably tell them to leave too.
Shit, my band was shut down because I was dressed in women's clothing.
I didn't really take it as an assault on my free speech;
I mean, it was a church.
I didn't really take it as an assault on my free speech;
I mean, it was a church.
I wore an anti-Bush shirt on stage once.
No one cared.
I cried myself to sleep that night.
No one cared.
I cried myself to sleep that night.
as did congressman Dennis Kucinich
Lost me when you brought up Congressman Tinfoil.
my band got shut down because we suck ass.
Lost me when you brought up Congressman Tinfoil.
Yeah, no kidding... I don't know how I feel about that guy... I mean, on some levels I agree with what he stands for and all, and on others I'm like "dude... you're a weenie, and no one respects you... go home."
Get real, your friends band probably wore them just to get shut down and generate free PR. Lame. Getting on the news for wearing or promoting anti-bush ideas is SOOOOO January!
Land of the freecorporate interest and filth peddaling whores of industry......... what a fucking joke.
rouge covered what i was thinking.
with some modification of course.
Look, just because you are in a band, you are not the next Political Messiah. You are just some dude that knows other dudes that have some talent and nothing else to do on weekends. Protest all you want, but don't bitch about it when others protest your protesting.
They didn't play by the rules that a private property owner liked, so the owner of said property told them to STFU. Tough shit.
They didn't play by the rules that a private property owner liked, so the owner of said property told them to STFU. Tough shit.
those douche bags probably got what they wanted by being shut down, now they have something to complain about. they got their attention and now they will be a little bit more pissed at the government (even though the government had nothing to do with this); and hopefully we can expect just a few more songs about politics from lame variations of bands.
From: SwimFan - in a time of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act
Date: 5/1/06 @ 2:10 PM
39
They didn't play by the rules that a private property owner liked, so the owner of said property told them to STFU. Tough shit.
this is what the pro-nazi germans said about protesters in 1937.
no no, carmen. no.
this is what the pro-nazi germans said about protesters in 1937.
I call bullshit. Show me.
From: the_big_wiggle - Official 2007 Fazed Fantasy Football Champion - Vet
Date: 5/1/06 @ 2:24 PM
42
OMG what about my first amendment rights???!
Look, just because you are in a band, you are not the next Political Messiah.
Well said. This could apply to more musicians, like the Dixie Chicks or Neil Young to name a few. Everyone has the right to an opinion but just because you are a celebrity does not mean that yours holds any more weight that anyone else's.
From: the_big_wiggle - Official 2007 Fazed Fantasy Football Champion - Vet
Date: 5/1/06 @ 2:30 PM
44
Surely Neil Young's rights weigh heavier because of Downtown alone.
This could apply to more musicians, like the Dixie Chicks or Neil Young to name a few. Everyone has the right to an opinion but just because you are a celebrity does not mean that yours holds any more weight that anyone else's.
oh just crawl into a hole and die already. they are celebrities and i don't care what they think. that courtesy is extended to you as well.
There's a difference between legal and "right" though. The point is that people should be able to express their political views in what is basically a public forum...
that isn't a public forum
So yes, the venue is partially owned by the mall, but they were hosting an event run by a third-party who knew exactly what type of band they had hired
I too think it is crap if they knew what the music was going to be. I am sure it is totally legal, which sucks, but I just hope that the band got paid. If not, it seems like that would constitute a breech of contract which would not be legal, if they were to be paid for their performance.
Look, just because you are in a band, you are not the next Political Messiah.
/yawn
Yes, that is exactly what happened. They were angry that the venue shut them down and they over-reacted and over-stated what happened. It also would have been wise for a venue to research the bands they were going to have playing there.
Art is politics.
Actually, if the band took this to court, I'd bet on the band winning. While yes, it was a private organization and private property, it could still be considered a public forum.
Since they were allowing bands to play without screening them before hand, and it was a public concert, it could still be considered a "designated public forum". If it was a private concert or if they venue didn't allow any political speech at all, that would be acceptable. But an open, free public concert that only banned anti-Bush speech is legally shady.
From the history of the Supreme Court, I'd put money down that they would side with the band.
Since they were allowing bands to play without screening them before hand, and it was a public concert, it could still be considered a "designated public forum". If it was a private concert or if they venue didn't allow any political speech at all, that would be acceptable. But an open, free public concert that only banned anti-Bush speech is legally shady.
From the history of the Supreme Court, I'd put money down that they would side with the band.
Uhh, halfahero? You're wrong. Sorry.
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