The indie label dropped Ariel Pink after he attended last week's Capitol riots. What is the limit for companies to drop their association with a toxic personality?
Yes, this artist getting dropped from their label was the right move. But I think a "round of applause" is giving Mexican Summer far too much credit. They always knew the kind of person Ariel Pink was, and they gave him a platform for years to make racist, sexist, and homophobic comments in the press, all for the sake of promoting his albums to make them money. Looking at their roster, Pink was arguably one of the biggest artists they had, which indicates why it took so long for him to get dropped, and it was only in the face of mounting pressure from the public. Reading through the recent Pitchfork piece, Charlotte Ercoli Coe's letter to co-founder Keith Abrahamsson detailing her abuse from Pink seemingly had no influence on them. Which is ironic, since they chose to let go of another artist during this period, Part Time, due to allegations of abuse against him. Once again, their separation from Part Time came after public pressure increased. I think it is pretty clear that this label was hoping to continue working with Pink, purely for the fact that for so long he has gotten away with his "troll" persona, and there were seemingly no repercussions that they actually cared about until now.
It's a shame that Mexican Summer has chosen to align themselves with Ariel Pink and other associated acts for so long, rather than working to build a roster of more deserving artists that reflect a more progressive world.
Yes, this artist getting dropped from their label was the right move. But I think a "round of applause" is giving Mexican Summer far too much credit. They always knew the kind of person Ariel Pink was, and they gave him a platform for years to make racist, sexist, and homophobic comments in the press, all for the sake of promoting his albums to make them money. Looking at their roster, Pink was arguably one of the biggest artists they had, which indicates why it took so long for him to get dropped, and it was only in the face of mounting pressure from the public. Reading through the recent Pitchfork piece, Charlotte Ercoli Coe's letter to co-founder Keith Abrahamsson detailing her abuse from Pink seemingly had no influence on them. Which is ironic, since they chose to let go of another artist during this period, Part Time, due to allegations of abuse against him. Once again, their separation from Part Time came after public pressure increased. I think it is pretty clear that this label was hoping to continue working with Pink, purely for the fact that for so long he has gotten away with his "troll" persona, and there were seemingly no repercussions that they actually cared about until now.
It's a shame that Mexican Summer has chosen to align themselves with Ariel Pink and other associated acts for so long, rather than working to build a roster of more deserving artists that reflect a more progressive world.
Great point, especially now that we’ve found out Coe wrote that letter last summer. Thanks for reading.