The music industry is hitting pause on Tuesday in response to the death of George Floyd at the knee of a Minneapolis police officer last week.
Major labels, independents, music publicists, managers, artists and others have posted “Blackout Tuesday” notices on social media.
“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 loss,” reads the statement. “Join us on Tuesday, June 2 as a day to disconnect from work and reconnect with our community.”
Among those participating is Canada’s Red Umbrella PR, which explained in an Instagram post: “Not being racist isn’t enough, we must be anti-racist and use our voices and actions to challenge those around us to stand up and speak up against systemic racism and injustice. We stand with the Black community – our friends, our colleagues, artists, music lovers and all in the fight against racial injustice. We ask you to do the same.”
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Warner Music, Sony Music, Def Jam, Interscope Geffen A&M and others have posted notices that they will join Blackout Tuesday in solidarity.
“While this is only one day, we are committed to continuing the fight for real change,” read a statement from Warner Music Group, which vowed that business “will not go on as usual” on Tuesday. “We will be using this day to collectively reflect on what we as a company can do to put action towards change and we will be taking steps in the coming weeks and months.”
Many of the companies participating in Blackout Tuesday said they have made, or will make, donations to organizations fighting racism.