Music

Hologram rapper shut down by police

by Jesse Locke

It’s hard out here for a hologram rapper. A weekend performance from the 3D image of Chicago’s Chief Keef in Hammond, Indiana was stopped by police officers moments before it started.

This surprise appearance at the outdoor Craze Fest was billed as a “Stop the Killing” benefit to raise money for shooting victims. It followed a previous cancelled hologram performance in Keef’s hometown, with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuael calling the rapper “an unacceptable role model” whose music “promotes violence” and that even his hologram form “posed a significant public safety risk.”

Craze Fest promoter Malcolm Jones disagreed, telling the New York Times that local officials “believed that it would start trouble, but the first thing Chief Keef said via hologram was: ‘Chicago, we need to stop the violence. Let our kids live.’”

19-year-old Keef chose not to appear in his corporeal form due to arrest warrants following two child support cases. After his hologram took the stage at Craze Fest close to 10:30 p.m. Hammond police pulled the plug within one minute. There were no arrests, citations or incidents, but 2,000 fans were cleared from the park.

“It’s not like we’re anti-rap,” offered Hammond Mayor Thomas M. McDermott Jr. “It’s just this specific case. Gang violence in Chicago is the reality right now, and I’m not going to invite someone that might be a threat to public safety.”

Alki David, CEO of Hologram USA, which sponsors Chief Keef, voiced his own disapproval in a statement: “Shame on the mayor and police chief of Hammond for shutting down a voice that can create positive change in a community in desperate need. And for taking away money that could have gone to help the victims’ families. This was a legal event and there was no justification to shut it down besides your glaring disregard for the First Amendment right to free speech. Mark my words, if you censor us, you only make us stronger.”

[h/t FACTMag]