Accountability in Music • Page 337

Then message Matty about it instead of calling people out on this website. Why are you looking to this thread to be accountable for him AND ourselves and not just him?

Like, I’ll be honest, I’m not gonna cancel Matty because he listens to Brand New or Pinegrove. Do I think it’s shitty? Yeah, I do, but all I can do is spread awareness when I can. There are far shittier things an individual can do than listen to a problematic artist.

 

def feels like this argument is coming from a place of good faith

 

This site isn’t a monolith, and this thread certainly not. We disagree all the time on how to handle things because we are a group of people that I like to think does their best. What part of this conversation is meant to spur accountable action, what part is achieving anything other than attacking users of this website and particularly this thread? Do you think this discussion brings value to this topic or are you just trying to have a “gotcha” moment against some nebulous entity you think exists here?

 

as if it's anything but the latter

 

Really? Ok then.

“he probably doesn’t know” doesn’t work for me.

 

don't you think a business relationship is somewhat different from posting a screenshot on a story

 

So this is more about the people on this website it is about Matty’s listening habits then, got it

 

really doing the lord’s work here, thanks @currytheword

 

I think this is more about everyone liking to voice their opinion on a band like Brand New, and the people that still listen to them, and then Matty posts about them, and it pretty much just gets ignored.

 

Yesterday at 8:30 PM

This is on this very page.

 

Listening to a problematic artist and posting about them on your popular instagram account are very different things and if Matty posted about BN knowing full well about the abuses then that would be reason to be upset.

However, there really is no evidence to suggest that he does know, in which case, this is a pretty innocent action. No point in getting mad at people here about it. If you think this is suspect, then tweet at him.

 

I have a very vague example in mind of a time I struggled with loving a problematic artist because of the way some users on the site made me feel at the time, and also being annoyed that another problematic favorite's behavior was being glossed over at the same time. I'm keeping it vague to avoid calling out or hurting the feelings of anyone here, or having my own feelings hurt.

All this to say, those feelings almost NEVER came from this thread. I've literally experienced almost exclusively productive conversations with regular users in good faith, and so on this case, while I can understand the frustration, I really, really think it's misguided here.

 

I've typed and erased like 5 things I wanted to say cuz I cannot word them right for the life of me, but maybe there is a conversation to be had about how to handle seeing artists we love unknowingly promote shitty people

Cuz I mean I get the whole "if you don't like it @ them" thing but it can be scary being the 1 person @ing someone who can send legions of fans at you

Idk y'all I didn't see the posts cuz I don't follow Matty or anything but I'm sure there have been times artists I do follow promote shitty people and I haven't said anything and probably should, but then again going back to what some of y'all said is that really our responsibility? Idk I just think maybe this conversation isn't pointless and unproductive even if it felt like it started off as like a fingerpointing thing

Or maybe I'm just rambling idk I'm having a bad day

 

I, personally, do not care if he knows or does not know

 

Why is that? If I listened to The 1975, I’d be very disappointed in knowing he was openly supporting someone like Brand New while being aware of Lacey’s behaviour.

 

The crazy thing here is the claim that that post was “ignored”. It wasn’t! There were several posts in a row expressing disappointment in Matty and wishing he would do better. I think that view is shared by everyone in this thread. What else can we really do?

 

Say idk again

 

Because I just don’t care what adult human beings choose to listen to or tell people they’re listening to. I don’t think feeling shame and the need to hide re: what one listens to is a healthy mindset to promote. I used to give a shit but goddamn my life and mental health has improved tenfold since loosening my grip. Shit’s exhausting.

Also, as someone who has been sexually assaulted many times over my view is ever shifting on the best ways to deal with these things and how to stop or diminish the cycles/systems of abuse and, at least at the moment, my mindset is currently not where many of y’all are at with it.

 

I appreciate you explaining your viewpoint, honestly.

My thoughts on the matter basically boil down to if he wants to listen to them, that’s fine. He’s free to do as he pleases, and I don’t personally see the harm in just listening if he so chooses. I don’t like the idea of someone in such a position of power or an influencer of his caliber openly promoting abusers and their work to legions of impressionable fans though.

 

I would not assume he is knowingly promoting an abuser though.

 

Definitely not, and I should have been more clear about that in my last post, my bad. I was writing that from the hypothetical scenario where he did know.

 

How do we prove this hypothetical?

 

Without speaking to him directly about it, I don’t think anyone could. I suppose tweeting at him or DMing him would be the best chance any of us would have.

 

He has a right to share what he’s listening to like any of us do. It seems the harder question for people is how they handle it themselves, not how someone like Matty or anyone else who shares a insta story of a pinegrove or Brand New song.

 

Of course he has the right, but if he were aware of Jesse’s past and still chose to promote them to his followers, I would consider that not great behaviour.