After the announcement of their 2018 lineup, Newcastle festival THIS THAT has come under fire for their inclusion of controversial band Sticky Fingers.
Over the past two years allegations against the band have piled up, mainly against frontman Dylan Frost and his attested abusive actions towards women, people of colour, and the LGBTQ community.
Their return to the stage as surprise headliners at this year’s Bad Friday festival was met with backlash. Subsequent releases of music have been relatively unsuccessful in Australia, with the band seemingly being blacklisted from Triple J.
Various Australian musicians such as Miss Blanks have been vocal about their disappointment in the music industry seemingly ignoring the band’s past actions and continuing to support them.
The festival gave a statement to media on the band’s inclusion on their lineup:
“The This That team do not condone abuse and strive to create a safe and welcoming space for all those attending the festival.
“The team is aware of the rumours and allegations surrounding recent behaviour of some of the members of the band Sticky Fingers.
“This That will not be commenting further on the band’s personal matters.”
However questions are being raised about what actions other artists should be taking when it comes to working with/discussing Sticky Fingers. Discussion has quickly moved to how the other artists on the THIS THAT lineup are/will respond to the band being included on the lineup.
Activist Sally Rugg tweeted the other artists on the bill, asking them to speak out against the band playing the festival.
Unless you approve of their disgusting behaviour, you’ve got to speak out against Sticky Fingers playing at this festival
People look up to you. They’re looking at whether you’re okay sharing the stage with abusers, and whether you’ll turn a blind eye to their behaviour.
— Sally Rugg (@sallyrugg) June 26, 2018
Many others had similar responses to the announcement. These statements are valid and make a fair point. Artists do have a responsibility to their fans and audiences to ensure they are promoting and working with people who respect and believe in safe spaces.
What more can these acts do?
This conversation has been ongoing for a long time now, yet nothing seems to be changing.
Speaking out against the band playing the festival is a fair expectation in many cases. However it seems unlikely that it’s going to affect the lineup from This That’s statement. After a band speaks out, what more can they do?
For these artists, this festival is a source of income and exposure. Many growing artists dream of being given these opportunities. What do we expect them to do if Sticky Fingers doesn’t pull out or get removed from the bill?
Is it fair to expect these artists to pull out, lose their income and an opportunity to play and gain new fans and exposure because of the actions of another band? Is it fair to force them into an uncomfortable situation of having to choose whether to play a festival or not because Sticky Fingers have consistently been given opportunities to continue and further their careers.
The music industry is infamous for ignoring allegations of sexual assault and more against artists. Look at artists like Thirty Seconds To Mars – there are countless allegations against Jared Leto for sexual misconduct with underage women. Do we expect the support acts for their shows to pull out of those opportunities?
This is something that promoters and labels are responsible for. It is on them to not distribute the bands music. It is on them to not book them. Asking other artists to sacrifice important opportunities for their careers is not fair.
Yes, they should be vocal about this, and yes, they should be thinking about their fans and the safety of those around them. But it is not fair that they should be affected by the actions of another group.
