The controversy over young rap combo Odd Future's hyper-violent, misogynistic wordplay switched from theoretical implications to an all-too-real situation yesterday afternoon (October 30) when band member Left Brain (aka Vyron Turner) reportedly slapped a female photographer in the media pit during the outfit's performance at New Orleans's Voodoo Experience music festival. Suddenly those cartoony, self-referential comedy clips don't seem so funny anymore.
As The Daily Swarm points out, NBC reports that things got out of hand once de facto leader Tyler, the Creator started dissing the media up front, explaining that having the press barricaded in an area that separated the photographers from the crowd was unfair to the fans who stood behind them. The rest of the group concurred, but Left Brain apparently took the conflict one step further.
The rapper reportedly took to the pit and pushed around a number of photographers and threw water bottles at them before he slapped freelance shooter Amy Harris in the face, knocking her camera to the ground.
"I have worked many shows before, and I've had to deal with a band flinging water at the photographers, but I never expected this to happen," Harris told NBC after the incident. "In the pit, the male to female ratio is about 20 to 1. There were way more men in that pit than women."
Harris said she will not press assault charges against the band, adding that her equipment was not damaged in the attack.
Odd Future have yet to respond to the situation.
While the divisive hip-hop act continue to gain steam in the mainstream, their well-documented detractors, from Between Friends to Tegan & Sara to GLAAD are no doubt palming their faces in annoyance/anger.
UPDATE: As Pitchfork reports, Odd Future's publicist has offered the following statement about the alleged incident:
"There simply is no truth to the accusation floating around the internet. Its no secret that Odd Future has a love/hate relationship with photographers at shows simply because sometimes they are given access the group wishes their fans would have instead. After telling the photographers to clear out multiple times (as they've done before) Vyron (Leftbrain) took a swipe at a few cameras, NOT people. To manipulate the situation to insinuate an attack on a woman specifically is careless and manipulative."
As The Daily Swarm points out, NBC reports that things got out of hand once de facto leader Tyler, the Creator started dissing the media up front, explaining that having the press barricaded in an area that separated the photographers from the crowd was unfair to the fans who stood behind them. The rest of the group concurred, but Left Brain apparently took the conflict one step further.
The rapper reportedly took to the pit and pushed around a number of photographers and threw water bottles at them before he slapped freelance shooter Amy Harris in the face, knocking her camera to the ground.
"I have worked many shows before, and I've had to deal with a band flinging water at the photographers, but I never expected this to happen," Harris told NBC after the incident. "In the pit, the male to female ratio is about 20 to 1. There were way more men in that pit than women."
Harris said she will not press assault charges against the band, adding that her equipment was not damaged in the attack.
Odd Future have yet to respond to the situation.
While the divisive hip-hop act continue to gain steam in the mainstream, their well-documented detractors, from Between Friends to Tegan & Sara to GLAAD are no doubt palming their faces in annoyance/anger.
UPDATE: As Pitchfork reports, Odd Future's publicist has offered the following statement about the alleged incident:
"There simply is no truth to the accusation floating around the internet. Its no secret that Odd Future has a love/hate relationship with photographers at shows simply because sometimes they are given access the group wishes their fans would have instead. After telling the photographers to clear out multiple times (as they've done before) Vyron (Leftbrain) took a swipe at a few cameras, NOT people. To manipulate the situation to insinuate an attack on a woman specifically is careless and manipulative."
