The Campus Activities Board (CAB) has issued a statement apologizing for its selection for this year’s Modstock Festival, American rapper B.o.B, which is set for this Thursday. The statement comes nearly a week after they initially announced that he will perform at the event.
The rapper has offended some members of the Boston College community through the lyrics of “Flatline,” a song that suggested anti-Semitic views by invoking the conspiracy theory of Jewish control over the United States government and appear to support British historian David Irving, who is a known Holocaust-denier. “Flatline” gained the attention of the Anti-Defamation League, which was “troubled” by multiple lyrics in the song, shortly after it was released.
CAB’s full statement is below:
“In light of recent concerns over our selection for Modstock, we would like to respond to the BC community by apologizing to any student, faculty, or staff member offended by our selection,” the statement said. “We hope that the Boston College community knows that we were not aware of B.o.B’s viewpoints when we chose him to perform, and it was never our intention to offend anyone. We invite artists to perform based on their musical talent and popularity with the student body. Any invitation to perform at any of our concerts is not, and has never been, an endorsement of the artist’s viewpoints.”
“This has been a learning experience for us all, and we pledge to work toward conducting a more thorough vetting process in the years to come.”
Featured Image by Dominick Brady / Wikimedia Commons
