A controversial EP by TAI, Indian Kill, has been pulled by Dim Mak Records due to the fury of complaints the EP generated. As you can tell from the artwork and name, the EP clearly stepped over racial boundaries which offended various different people and resulted in official complaints. Dim Mak released an official statement stating:
“It is not our intent to offend anyone by propagating negative cultural stereotypes,”
“Now that we’ve witnessed the earnest offense that the release of this EP has caused (especially in relation to an issue that is much more significant than a simple dance music single could ever be), we understand that there are some lines that cannot and should not be crossed. To put it simply, this situation forced us to take a long hard look at how we balance creative freedom with cultural sensitivity.”
“We at Dim Mak understand completely that a mistake was made. As such, we, in conjunction with the artist TAI, are pulling the release from all stores, and we, along with TAI, are donating all proceeds from the sale of the release to the Native American Heritage Association.”
The artist, TAI, has also extended an apology to those offended. TAI officially stated that “I fully apologize for the artwork, title, and sounds included in my recently released Indian Kill EP and take complete responsibility for any offense it may have caused,” he wrote. “I currently have the release being removed from all sites.”
An unfortunate situation for both parties, but at least those at fault recognized it and did their best to fix it. Drop The lime, an official remixer on the EP, made it clear that he wanted no part in the racial offense of the EP:
when I was asked to remix@therealtai single i had NO idea the artwork and ep was as so. I am ashamed and want no association with this.
— Drop The Lime (@dropthelime) May 1, 2013
-Nick Ward @NickWard20
The use of a negative image to promote music was a bad decision.
It was a bad decision by many parties: from the artist himself, to the firm that handles any “creative marketing”, to his management company, to the American label that signed the recording and its staff that handles putting together the press kits for media consumption. Don’t forget about the people who handle the books and accounting. This project went through a chain of operation and command that dominates operations of their size in the music industry.
As a music producer, I know about the creative process of putting together dance music. One usually works long hours to perfect a recording that is intended for commercial release. First, the artist puts together the original recording, which is usually has to pass pre-approval by upper management for it to proceed to mastering. Why spend money on something that isn’t going to bring a return? Professional mastering costs money. If a vinyl release it planned, then it has to be mastered for vinyl and the metal plates cut. Another cost.
Then, there’s the creation of the graphics that are to accompany the music. This could include the creation of a distinctive font or a specific design. In this case, it was the image of an arrow stuck into the head of a man in a head-dress, bleeding from the left eye with a look of horror on his face. What was the artist’s intent behind that specific image? As, all Native Americans know there is power and spirit in the use of symbols. Many tribes have specific symbols that are a deep integral part of their spirituality. So, I was a little taken aback by the distribution of such a strong statement. The depiction of the death of another human being is no light matter and should never be used for self-promotion and gain.
On that note, the big question on people’s minds is: How did this blatant negative image of a Native American pass approval for distribution by an American recording label? There’s been no reply via Twitter or Facebook to my inquiries into the matter by the parties involved. If this was the creation of a media team in a negative marketing campaign, then it really was done in poor taste and I feel a complete failure by all the people involved in the promotion of this release.
There was a comment on a blog about the ‘silver lining’ that some Native American families will be helped by the donation of the money made by ‘INDIAN KILL’. I thought to myself that as a Native American that has been involved in the dance music scene since the early 1990’s, including helping to throw one of the first raves in Santa Fe, NM, I can do much better that this sorry attempt at any apology to really help my people and to preserve my Native American culture by displaying it in the best light possible.
Inspired by peace activists like John Lennon and Yoko Ono, instead of taking to my guitar, I opened my laptop and started to work on a new musical release that was truly Inspired by Navajo spirituality. Here it is:
https://soundcloud.com/gksandoval/gk-sandoval-the-blessingway
The Blessingway is a traditional Navajo ceremony to bring harmony and balance. The traditional Blessingway is the creation story of the Navajo people. It details the emerging of the Navajo people through various worlds, overcoming obstacles and aligning with Beauty–the natural state of the Navajo(Dine). I’m using this project to raise awareness about Native American stereotypes & how casually people view an entire race of people.
This track is my musical response to the ignorant use of Native American imagery by TAI for his release called ‘INDIAN KILL’. There’s no need for the use of negative iconography in a dance music scene that is based on equality and equanimity.
Dance music is supposed to bring people together.
If people are going to create “unintentionally ignorant” dance music and graphic art, I’ll take it one step further by creating Aware and Enlightened dance music and art that promotes and highlights Native American culture and Indigenous spirituality.