One trend that holds consistent within every realm of music is the tendency of veteran fans to lose their composure and decency when their favorite artists take on new styles or evolve their sound. Feelings of betrayal and anger seem to arise whenever a popular artist decides to mature or explore new directions, leading to what’s sure to feel like a difficult, existential crisis on the part of the performer. Do they stick to what made them famous and deny themselves the chance to present new layers of themselves to listeners? Or do they do what feels right an end up enraging and alienating the base of supporters who got them to where they are today?
It’s a delicate balance, and one that, if approached by one party with too much force, can lead to hurt feelings and a more bitter relationship as a whole.
During a recent string of shows in Australia, producer Arty ran into several complications that resulted in an outpouring of criticism and hatred toward both the performance and he himself as an artist. The four shows he played were each delayed from their original time slot from half an hour to 3 hours, he said in a Facebook post.
The 45-minute set in Sydney, he said, was seen by many as disrespectful to the paying attendees who would have rather heard him play more “classic” tracks from a different era in Arty’s career. He was bombarded with messages calling him “garbage,” “edm nonsense” and worse, which he said prompted him to respond.
“You can say whatever you wanna say on the social media, PRAISE THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH. But keep in mind, on the other side of the screen, there’s guy, just like you, who likes what he’s doing and he’s doing it for you in the first place.”
He urged his listeners to focus on supporting the artists that they do like, rather than attempting to force someone they used to enjoy back into a box.
Read his full statement below.