June 8th, 2009

DJ Jazzy Jeff Kicked Offstage In Kansas City; Accusations Of Racism Surface

Something happened at the Power & Light District — an entertainment complex in Kansas City — on Saturday night, and while there’s some he-said-she-said going on, DJ Jazzy Jeff definitely had his set cut short after 30 minutes. He and his camp claim it was because they were playing hip-hop, while officials say it was because the volume was too loud.

Apparently, according to this piece in the Kansas City Star, there have already been racial controversies at the Power & Light District:

For a year, the black community has been in arms about perceived racism at the entertainment district, a place their tax money helped fund. But it’s always rebutted. Everyone is welcome at the P&L, officials say.

Well, those who follow the hip-hop music scene have more to chew on since late Saturday night, when one of hip-hop’s icons, DJ Jazzy Jeff, cut short a set of music and left the stage in a dispute over the kind of music his show was spinning.

I walked in just as he was walking off the stage. He had performed less than 30 minutes.

The crowd booed and I heard people, both black and white, yell about how the Power & Light didn’t want him to play hip-hop. I wasn’t sure what happened, but I knew it was bad.

And according to a separate article also in the Kansas City Star:

The president of the Power & Light District, Jon Stephens, said his staff just wanted DJ Jazzy Jeff’s production crew to turn down music that was too loud for the sound system. But DJ Jazzy Jeff, one of the nation’s premier hip-hop performers, said the Power & Light District staff stopped his show at the Kansas City Live pavilion shortly after it began Saturday night because of the style of hip-hop he was playing.

“How did they kick me off stage in Kansas City for playin’ hip hop,” stated a posting on DJ Jazzy Jeff’s Twitter page. “I’m a 25-year legend … this is some (expletive).”

The message continued: “I mean, I was playin’ (expletive) like “Just a Friend” … it’s a Heineken commercial for god’s sake … 3,000 people were rockin … KC Live sucks … they said they wanted Top 40 … look at the Top 40 list.”

Officials at the downtown entertainment district disputed his accusation, saying DJ Jazzy Jeff was invited because of his hip-hop reputation.

“We would not have booked him if we weren’t aware of his style of music,” Stephens said.

The Star interviewed Jeff at home here in Philly yesterday; here’s some of what he had to say:

“My road manager walked up to me and said they were having problems with the music I was playing,” Jazzy Jeff told me. “I played three more songs and he comes back. I knew something was wrong. They said I had to kick Skillz off the stage, change the format of the music I was playing or quit. They said if I continued playing they had 30 cops ready to come escort me offstage. So I stopped.”

“I was playing Rihanna; she is Top 40,” he says. “If they would have let my set play, they would have known I play everything. I play rock, funk, soul, pop, hip-hop, reggae. I don’t play for a certain genre, race or gender. I play for music lovers.”

In his 25-year career, at 44 years old, Jeff has never been told to end a set because of hip-hop. He says he has never felt that kind of racism. The “element” that officials referred to felt like a reference to black people, a hip-hop crowd.

“I’m in shock,” he says. “I didn’t understand what element they were talking about. I looked out in the crowd and it was multicultural, but about 75 percent white. Everyone was having a great time. I wondered what was so offensive. I never had a race issue. I didn’t know how to feel. I was playing ‘Just a Friend.’ Is that offensive? What element? It’s uncomfortable when you feel unwanted.”

Posted by michael alan goldberg | Posted in News |

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