On Tuesday, June 2, the music industry is calling for a “blackout” in response to George Floyd’s death and as a way to stand in solidarity against racial injustice in our country.
Due to recent events please join us as we take an urgent step of action to provoke accountability and change.
As gatekeepers of the culture, it’s our responsibility to not only come together to celebrate the wins, but also hold each other up during a loss.
Join us Tuesday JUNE 2 as a day to disconnect from work and reconnect with our community.
This message began circulating among those in the industry, and some variation has since been echoed by numerous artists, labels, managers, publicists and other organizations related to the music business. Its origin is actually this site, which explains the initiative and provides a helpful list of resources.
The idea is to pause on entertainment news and instead use that as a time to reflect on your own influence and to connect with your community, wherever that may be. As a team, the Loudwire staff has discussed and considered how we can honor this while making an impact.
But this is not a day off.
We will take this day as an opportunity to break from the regular news cycle while making an effort to connect with you, our rock and metal community, and to stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and show that metalheads unite against racism.
This is not just an empty movement for one day. As we move forward we will continue to reflect on how to provide you with the content you have come to know from us while continuing to consider our impact in this fight for basic human rights.
There are important events happening right now, every moment of every day, that need attention. Album and song promotion can wait. Lists can wait. Anniversaries can wait. Our regular content can wait. We cannot wait for justice any longer.
Please visit theshowmustbepaused.com to learn more about the impetus for this initiative — which was started by two black women in the music industry — and for resources to help during this fight for progress check below (courtesy of #TheShowMustBePaused).
Help the family of George Floyd here.
Fight for Breonna Taylor here.
Help the family of Ahmaud Arbery here.
Want to help protesters? Donate to one or more community bail funds here.
Visit Movement For Black Lives for additional ways you can help the cause.
Want to connect with leaders building grass roots campaigns? Click here.
Are you an ally and want to learn more? Here are some anti-racism resources.