Just now I had to make a decision that I do not agree with, or at least made the decision to make a decision that I do not agree with as it’s a decision to support a writer who wrote about a new album from a band who have a member who may have done something pretty awful.

I’m keeping things vague for a number of reasons and I’m going to speak to the writer and see what they want to do, but if they want to go ahead I’m publishing the article. I don’t feel good about this and I may pull it at a later date depending on how things progress, but I want to support the writer’s writing.

I feel really conflicted about this one. We don’t talk enough about the behaviour and attitudes in music and we really need to talk about this more. There’s just far too much fucked shit going on in music and too often we give it a pass or ignore it because we can. I think a lot of people don’t want to consider the fact that bands and artists they like might be problematic in some way and so it is easier to deny and sweep under the rug or point fingers elsewhere, and so on and so forth. Willful and aggressive ignorance.

Part of the issue here is that the band this writing is about are distancing themselves from the member who may be problematic. I say may because the issue appears clear cut but I’m yet to have the full picture, but I digress.

The rest of the band are distancing themselves; Is it fair to deny an article written about them when they’re, by all appearances, being proactive where they can about distancing themselves from a pretty serious issue? I don’t know if there is an answer to this that is more correct than another, but it certainly is something worth thinking about.

I’m not someone massive in the music industry. I don’t even know if I could be classified as being small in the industry. Regardless, I think it is important that I consider these things. I also think it is important for everyone who works in the music industry in any capacity to think about these things. There is a lot that we can support, knowingly or otherwise and we need to make sure that we are supporting things that lead to positive change. Too often support does not.

We shouldn’t sweep things under the rug; What we do and do not publish and promote can have a pretty serious impact when it comes to abetting shitty behaviour. It’s good that this kind of stuff is being more actively addressed and it is good that things seem to be changing and moving into a more positive and supportive direction. The music industry doesn’t have to thrive on supporting shitty behaviour and attitudes. That said, there remains a lot of work that needs to be done.

The time it took to write five-hundred words: 15:40:94

This was a bit of a difficult write as I was trying to make sure I got my point across without this being a lengthy and empty rant. I think I got there in the end, but perhaps putting this as a challenge was a rather inappropriate way to go about doing so.

Written at home.