Several bands withdrew from Shell Shock II after festival organizers announced that Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse had been asked to appear.
The metal music festival, which also serves as a charity event to raise funds and awareness for veterans and first responders with PTSD, will take place in Orlando, Florida on October 19. Following the announcement of Rittenhouse’s presence at the festival, Evergreen Terrace – who served as headliners – withdrew, with Southpaw, Let Me Bleed and American Hollow following suit.
Rittenhouse gained national attention in 2020 after shooting three protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, killing two of them and injuring one. He claimed the shooting was an act of self-defense and was acquitted of homicide charges in 2021.
In a statement shared on Evergreen Terrace’s official Facebook page, the group shared: “Evergreen Terrace has always supported and continues to support philanthropic events for veterans, PTSD awareness, child poverty and more. others, but we will not align ourselves with an event promoting one of the perceived murderers like Kyle Rittenhouse taking advantage of their pseudo-celebrity.
They continued: “Even after offering to remove Kyle from the event, we discovered several associated entities that we simply do not agree with. As defenders of free speech, we respectfully cancel the Shell Shock festival. We will personally contribute to a veterans’ charity and invite you to do the same.
Festival organizers announced that Texas tribute band Slipknot named SiC would headline.
Southpaw also shared a statement explaining that they agreed to perform at the festival because it was to raise money for a good cause and added that they “knew nothing about any specific individual being one of the show’s main supporters before we agreed… It’s just not what we signed up for. Period. »
“While we are advocates for free speech, we are not collectively a political group,” the Let Me Bleed group wrote in its statement. “It was only after we agreed to play the festival that these problematic and potentially alienating entities were used to market the show and that is something we simply cannot tolerate.” »
The Antihero Podcast – which organizes the festival – and Tyler Hoover – founder and CEO of Shell Shock II – both took to their social media pages to share their response to the bands’ withdrawal.
“We remained silent. But we are preparing. The liberal mob tried to destroy Shell Shock. But we will not allow it. It’s now about much more than a concert. This is a war of ideology,” the podcast wrote in a post on its Instagram page.
Hoover shared an Instagram Reel in which he criticized the bands and said: “I’m here to tell you that you’re not punk, you’re not hardcore.” You people, the people who troll and the people who say stupid things, you are the mentally ill part of society. It is you who are being manipulated. He then said the “Lynch mob” couldn’t “kill Shell Shock.”
In a statement shared with The United States todayHoover said the festival “will not turn away anyone who wants to attend; everyone is welcome. He continued: “We do not discriminate. Shell Shock is a PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) charity and awareness event aimed at supporting our military veterans and first responders. Many influencers have reached out to us to support us, including Kyle Rittenhouse.
