Nutter: Sorry about those curses in July Fourth show, but...
The Fourth of July concert broadcast from the Parkway might have made performers sound more profane than they actually were, an apologetic Mayor Nutter said Monday, 10 days after the show.
The Fourth of July concert broadcast from the Parkway might have made performers sound more profane than they actually were, an apologetic Mayor Nutter said Monday, 10 days after the show.
"I'm very sorry for anyone who could've been offended," Nutter said during an impromptu news conference.
After receiving complaints about high use of curse words by performers during the live show, the mayor reviewed tapes of all the performances.
He said three artists - the comedian and host Marlon Wayans, the rapper Nikki Minaj, and Vicci Martinez, a pop newcomer - were the only ones to curse on stage.
The mayor said he was looking at options going forward. One, he said, is not to invite back those performers.
"They are required to perform in such a way that is subject to network broadcast standards and practices" for live TV, he said, adding that artists are well aware of the rules.
Nutter defended the other artists who were bleeped out by 6ABC as a precautionary measure because of the nature of their lyrics.
Though bleeped, the band the Roots and the singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran "self-adjusted" their lyrics and did not curse as they sang that night, Nutter said. He said the singers Aloe Blacc and Jennifer Hudson used no profanity.
Minaj, however, used "inappropriate language and curse words," during her performance of a song called "Yass Bish," Nutter said. (His office said Minaj's entourage had listed the song title as "Yes, Chick, Yes.")
Nutter said that in seven years as mayor, this was the first time profanity was an issue at a July Fourth concert. He said lessons were learned, but he did not spell out what might be done differently next year.
He wouldn't say whether Minaj would still be welcome. "I'm not going to get into predicting a year out who we are going to have," he said.
Aside from the cursing, Nutter said it was a great weeklong celebration leading up to the Fourth of July. About one million people were on the Parkway for the concert and only six were arrested, all for minor offenses.
"It was a great concert," he said.
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