Music

McDonald's caves to pressure and will now pay artists at SXSW showcase

by Josiah Hughes

Beloved grease merchants McDonald’s were fried in the press last week, causing many to grimace after it was revealed that they asked indie bands to play their South by Southwest festival for free. Indie band Ex Cops, in particular, were not lovin’ it, detailing their beef with the restaurant in an open letter. Now, it appears that Ronald McDonald and co. have had a change of high-cholesterol heart — rather than hamburgle talent for the fest, they’ve decided to pay their artists.

McDonald’s initially told artists that “there isn’t a budget for an artist fee,” instead promising to feed the bands and audience with their beloved burgs and fries. After Ex-Cops called them out and the story went semi-viral, the corporation’s social media person was extra salty, saying it was a “#slownewsday” on Twitter.

Attempting to save face, a spokesperson for McDonald’s (who may or may not have been Mayor McCheese) shared a statement with Billboard. “SXSW started as a conference and festival for the music industry, related press and up-and-coming musicians bringing the community together to showcase their talents,” they said. “We are excited to expand our support of music at our SXSW activation where the lineup features a great assortment of more than 20 bands, honoring the spirit of the festival. To further support these artists, all bands performing at our showcase will be compensated.”

There you have it: while they haven’t specified just how much they plan to pay artists, the $90 billion company is planning to fork over some cheddar to their talent.

Right after the story broke, Ex Cops took to their Facebook to write, “We are thrilled that our letter made a difference. Thank YOU for helping us. Artists should be paid for their work.”

And that’s the power of campaigning through social media. Now, if only someone would write an open letter about how McDonald’s should bring back their pizza.