UPDATE: UNIFY Gathering Adds Four New Bands To 2019 Lineup
ORIGINAL STORY: Victoria’s UNIFY Gathering festival has removed I Killed The Prom Queen from its 2019 lineup, following backlash in response to social media comments made by former frontman Michael Crafter, who was due to perform with the band at next year’s festival.
In a statement, UNIFY organisers said they made the decision “with the backing of band members”.
“We made this decision because historical comments made on social media by former member Michael Crafter, who was to re-appear as guest singer of I Killed the Prom Queen for their one-off 2004 nostalgia set. These comments fall well short of today’s community standards and were considered deeply offensive to many people within our music community,” they said.
“These comments are completely unacceptable and contrary to our deeply held values and beliefs that music is for everyone and to be enjoyed by all.
“We want to create a culture of positive change within the music industry and it’s our responsibility to call out unacceptable behaviour wherever we see it.”
UNIFY organisers also stated their commitment to the ‘Your Choice’ initiative for safe spaces, and said Crafter “shouldn’t have been chosen to appear at Unify Gathering 2019”.
“We’d like to acknowledge that the members of the band have been really open and helpful in this conversation, and we wish them the best moving forward,” they said.
Read their statement in full, below.
UNIFY’s decision to pull I Killed The Prom Queen comes after Crafter apologised for his past offensive comments, following a backlash on UNIFY’s social media accounts.
UNIFY Gathering Statement:
Today UNIFY Gathering has made the decision, with the backing of band members, to remove I Killed The Prom Queen from the lineup for Unify Gathering 2019.
We made this decision because historical comments made on social media by former member Michael Crafter, who was to re-appear as guest singer of I Killed the Prom Queen for their one- off 2004 nostalgia set. These comments fall well short of today’s community standards and were considered deeply offensive to many people within our music community.
These comments are completely unacceptable and contrary to our deeply held values and beliefs that music is for everyone and to be enjoyed by all.
We want to create a culture of positive change within the music industry and it’s our responsibility to call out unacceptable behaviour wherever we see it.
UNIFY is committed to ensuring a safe place for anyone and everyone who wants to enjoy music. This is why we jointly launched the ‘Your Choice’ initiative, aimed at addressing cultural issues and harmful behaviour within the music festival landscape.
On reflection, we acknowledge that Michael Crafter shouldn’t have been chosen to appear at Unify Gathering 2019. We’d like to acknowledge that the members of the band have been really open and helpful in this conversation, and we wish them the best moving forward.
For anyone that would like to make an enquiry about their ticket, please email ticketing@unifygathering.com
