The lineup of ElectroniCON 2023 was announced last week, and John Maus was listed as a headliner alongside festival co-curator George Clanton and other artists including Doss, RXK Nephew, James Ferraro, and others. It takes place August 25-26 at New York’s Knockdown Center, and, as of today, Maus is no longer set to headline. After fans expressed their misgivings about Maus appearing at the vaporwave festival across various social media platforms, Clanton issued an apology and said Maus agreed not to perform.
“Due to the response by our ElectroniCON family of performers and fans, we have decided to move forward on this year’s festival without John Maus,” the statement reads. “I, George Clanton, apologize to everyone who felt unseen by this lineup decision, and the artists who have been unduly dragged into controversy. ElectroniCON is defined by its focus on outsider, underground electronic music and inclusive environment. We selected each of the venues that have hosted ElectroniCON events carefully as spaces that have historically held an inclusive space for POC and members of the LGBTQ+ community. We will never allow our singular event to turn into an unsafe space for our POC and LGBTQ+ fans and artists on the bill.”
Maus shared a comment with Pitchfork through a press representative, who indicated that the musician was donating some of his cancellation fee to the Trevor Project and Hope Not Hate. “I’m sorry that I made the ElectroniCON artists & fans feel unsafe. It seems like a very supportive and inclusive community so I regret I won’t be performing this year,” Maus wrote.
Maus was among the artists featured on the canceled Adult Swim series Million Dollar Extreme Presents: World Peace in 2016, which was created by alt-right troll Sam Hyde. Many artists whose music appeared on the show swiftly made statements distancing themselves from the series and Hyde’s views. In 2017, Maus gave an interview disavowing Nazism but stopped short of apologizing for his involvement in the series. “The guys I met were nice,” he said. “They weren’t burning crosses or doing anything like that.” He also said he didn’t want any hateful people at his shows. “If you would stand by and watch a pig smash the head of a trans person because they’re trans, fuck you.”
In his statement, Clanton cited Maus’ prior statements as part of the reason he felt comfortable booking him for ElectroniCON 2023. “As longtime fans of John Maus’ music, we looked to his lyrics, crowds drawn during recent festival appearances and his statements denouncing white supremacy, fascism and violence against LGBTQ+ as evidence that his inclusion on our lineup wouldn’t attract a vitriolic crowd at ElectroniCON,” the statement reads. “We underestimated the division this booking would sew amongst our community and did not anticipate a toxic war of words to potentially move beyond the internet into our concert space. John Maus and team agreed the best thing for all is to step away from the show.”
On Wednesday, January 6, 2021, Maus was filmed ostensibly people-watching at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. He was photographed that same day with Ariel Pink (who was not present at the Capitol during the insurrection) and documentary filmmaker Alex Lee Moyer. Moyer said she met with the pair to talk about an unrelated project and “felt obliged to record what was happening” in D.C. Maus has never directly commented about anything involving January 6. In November 2021, Maus performed at Los Angeles’ Substance Festival, which was his most recent U.S. show. He has other shows booked in the United Kingdom and Europe this year.
In the festival’s initial press release on Friday (June 23), ElectroniCON is described as curating a space for “iconic and fringe electronic artists,” and Clanton noted in a press quote: “I’m really proud to be a part of something with no compromises.” Monday’s statement concludes: “I regret that this has given cause to anyone to question our vehement stance against fascism. I, along with 100% Electronica and the venue, assure our incredible fanbase that ElectroniCON this year, along with all others past and future, will continue to be an inclusive event for all.”
This story was originally posted on Monday, June 26, at 11:44 p.m. Eastern. It was last updated on Tuesday, June 27, at 2:03 p.m. Eastern.
