CANCEL BUJU BANTON "RASTA GOT HATE" TOUR 2009

Rival Entertainment Presents... BUJU BANTON
w/ GRAMPS MORGAN Saturday, October 24th, 2009
Center Stage
All Ages
Doors 8pm / Show 9pm
$27 in Advance / $29 Day of Show

http://www.centerstage-atlanta.com/

404.885.1365
Chad Hermanson, Venue General Manager
Lucy Lawler, Booking
Brandon Mize, Booking

chad@rivalentertainment.com
lucy@rivalentertainment.com
brandon@rivalentertainment.com


Anti-gay reggae musician set to perform in ATL
Buju Banton concerts canceled by protests in other cities

Oct 23, 2009 | By: MATT SCHAFER and |COMMENTS
http://www.sovo.com/2009/10-23/news/localnews/10774.cfm

Buju Banton, the reggae artist who LGBT activists say called for the killing of gay men and women with his 1992 song “Boom Bye Bye,” is set to play in the heart of Midtown this weekend.

Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, remains a constant target of campaigns to shut down his concerts due to his anti-gay lyrics. He will perform at Center Stage on Oct. 24, but protests by gay activists have successfully shut down nearly half of his U.S. tour, including concerts in Cincinnati, Las Vegas and Houston, after Live Nation, AEG Live, and several independent venues canceled Banton’s shows.

One local activist, Dan Barnhardt, read about Banton’s upcoming Atlanta performance, looked for a protest to join, and ended up forming his own.

“I just read about it and it pissed me off,” Barnhardt said. “I was just surprised that of the 17 shows that were planned for October, eight were canceled but not Center Stage, which is in the heart of Midtown.”

Barnhardt, who is gay, held a protest sign for the first time at the City Hall protests in wake of the Sept. 10 police raid at the Atlanta Eagle, a gay bar. Barnhart said that the lyrics of “Boom Bye Bye,” and Banton’s recent statements make Center Stage, just a few miles from Piedmont Park, inappropriate.

“I think Buju Banton’s music goes beyond anti-gay and condoning violence against us,” Barnhardt said.

Barnhardt said Banton’s recent comments show he’s never made any attempt to make amends for “Boom Bye Bye.”

“He said [recently], ‘’This is a fight, and as I said in one of my songs, it will never be an end to the war between me and the ******,’” Barnhardt said.

Banton: ‘I’ve gone past that’

Banton did meet Oct. 12 in San Francisco with several LGBT activists, according to a story in SFweekly.com. The meeting took place before Banton’s performance at the Rock It Room. After the meeting, the activists agreed not to fight to shut the concert down and “expressed optimism about the possibility of further dialogue and action, toward a human rights agenda inclusive of both LBGT concerns and the reggae community,” according to SFweekly.com.

According to the story, Banton denied he is a hate speech artist or advocates murder in his music. “Let’s face the reality,” Banton said. “Whatever is said in a positive light can’t get out.” When asked about “Boom Bye Bye,” Banton said, “I don’t perform the song anymore. The reality is, I’ve gone past that.”

“Boom Bye Bye” is a haunting song where Banton sings in a gravely voice about “batty boys,” a derogatory term for gay men. Banton sings the “batty boys” have to die, and refers to gays as nasty men. The song also states gay men and lesbians are unnatural and references shooting them with Uzis.

Banton was arrested in 2005 for taking part of the beating of six men who were allegedly gay, but the charges were later dropped.

A spokesperson at Center Stage deferred comments to Banton’s label, Gargamel Music, which did not respond.

In an open letter from Gargamel President Tracii McGregor, the label defended Banton and said that “Boom Bye Bye” is not a call to violence. Instead McGregor touted Banton’s efforts to care for AIDS orphans and his work to raise awareness about genocide in Darfur.

“Yet none of these personal and professional accomplishments matter much to a gay lobby hell bent on destroying the livelihood of a man who has spent an entire career making amends — his way,” McGregor wrote. “Sadly, their 17 year fixation on waging war against one artist has prevented them from turning this initiative into a larger, more fruitful discussion that could perhaps effect real change.”

Barnhardt said he and his friends are setting up a Facebook page to let people know about the Banton concert in Atlanta and he hopes to have a dozen protesters outside of Center Stage when Banton performs.

“I don’t think people really know about it, I don’t really think that people know what’s happening,” Barnhardt said.

Buju Banton scheduled to perform in Atlanta

Other concerts canceled over reggae singer's violent anti-gay lyrics

Sep 11, 2009 | By: LAURA DOUGLAS-BROWN

Buju Banton, the reggae singer who has made headlines for violently anti-gay lyrics, is scheduled to perform Oct. 24 at Center Stage in Atlanta.
Most stops on his U.S. tour have been canceled due to protests and complaints.

As Entertainment Weekly reports:

The Jamaican dancehall star Buju Banton has a long-standing reputation for inciting anti-gay sentiment (his 1992 single “Boom Bye Bye” proposes pouring acid on homosexuals and shooting them in the head with an Uzi, among other things; in 2004, he was tried and acquitted on charges that he participated in the beating of six gay men).

Now, after months of organized protest, both AEG Live/Goldenvoice (the company that produces festivals like Coachella All Points West, and Bumbershoot) and Live Nation (the massive concert promoters behind 360 deals with Jay-Z, Madonna and U2) announced last night that they have canceled their respective concerts with Banton, who was scheduled to perform in major markets across the country through October.

Says L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center CEO Lorri L. Jean in a formal statement: “I hope this victory sends a deafeningly loud message to other promoters and concert venues that singers who glorify violence against LGBT people, or any group of people, should never be welcomed. It shouldn’t be necessary for us to pressure promoters to do the right thing; people like Banton should never have been booked in the first place.”

But apparently, that's not the case for the Atlanta show, which is presented by Rival Entertainment.

As of Friday, tickets to the Atlanta show were still on sale at Ticketmaster.com.

A staffer at Center Stage said the concert was still going on unless Banton chose to drop it based on the cancellation of his other shows.