big tech & big banks

UPDATE: my listings for the pioneer works commuter series originally had various kinds of ranting abt nasdaq (as below!), bc they were co-presenting the events –– but after discussing on the social mediaz, pioneer works has removed nasdaq from their series page & asked to have their signage removed from stage for future commuter series events; HURRAY!!!! big thanks to kwami winfield for being the face (/technically hands) of that debate, & may the ppl who sent me aggro DMs plz have a great nap!!! :D

UPDATE x2: a lot of ppl asking HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE well okay so *my understanding* = times square arts asked a bunch of orgs / groups –– including PW, rash bar, elsewhere, jazz at lincoln center, & more (full list here; note that on TSA's site the pioneer works listing does still say "Presented by Nasdaq," but like, this is just now happening, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ i'm not gonna fuss at ppl yet lol) –– to do these times square series things, but TSA didn't mention the whole nasdaq sitch at first, meaning PW didn't know about it at the time they invited their residents to perform. granted PW doesn't seem to have been bothered when they found out, cuz they put it on their website & went thru the first 5 wks of the series with "nasdaq" everywhere, but it makes sense that they don't feel ~married~ to the sitch if there's criticism: it wasn't their deal in the first place!

this is maybe how this shit happens tho, right??? like various institutions & orgs work together on things, ppl get invited to do stuff, & late in the game someone mentions that it's sponsored by BANK OF MURDER... & most ppl shrug & are like, "well i didn't make the deal with bank of murder," & a few people go "oh damn i REALLY *DO NOT* wanna play next to a BANK OF MURDER sign, but i also literally cannot afford food????" personally, i do not currently have the cash to pay august rent in 3 days; if someone offered ME a super well-paying BANK OF MURDER gig, i would PAUSE.

this is why it's so important that institutions protect artists from yuck affiliations!! if you are in a position of authority at your org, say something when you see the BANK OF MURDER logo so yr artists don't have to –– & if someone points out that the BANK OF MURDER sponsorship is a bummer, do the excellent thing & just say "hey yeah you're right, it is, lemme take care of that!!!" :D

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ORIG POST (7/26):

i just wrote a BIG RANT on nyc noise under an event happening today, july 26, & i have another (recently-expanded) large rant under an event happening a month from now, on august 26 –– & i think in the interest of condensing the main-page seething, it's time to move them to blog, aka a new tool for managing my feelings both more privately & more publicly!!! :D

july 26

even after rebalancing, >40% of the nasdaq index is a crew everyone calls "the sh*tty seven" (trust me, u don't need to check) –– microsoft, apple, alphabet (google), nvidia, amazon, tesla, meta –– & while we all luv kwami, WE DON'T LIKE BIG TECH!!

this specific case aside, it's great when institutions offer artist residencies, but remember that the institution is still the primary beneficiary; they generate more capital (of all kinds) from an affiliation with "their" artists than vice versa. this is still way better than nothing when the Moneyed Institution holds up their end of the bargain, granting artists resources & "exposure" without compromising their reputations or subjecting them to feelings of ambivalence, guilt, or shame about where the money comes from.

spots like pioneer works are very aware of their rep & community outcry, & they will change course if they see they've missed the mark (for example, last year PW quietly backed out of a deal after being accused of complicity in a luxury developer's artwashing initiative)... so the question is, what are our standards for how institutions treat "their" artists? personally, i think protecting artists from gross affiliations is the barest minimum, & orgs should stop inviting artists to play events presented by nasdaq (pw) or bank of america (roulette); it's bad enough laundering the reputations of bad actors for cash, but it's unacceptable to make "your" artists appear complicit in the "artwashing"–– especially given that none of the artists i've spoken to were *told* who was presenting these shows. 

& also... [CLICK 4 MORE WORDS + IMAGES]

aug 26

❓ • 7pm: Roulette x Bank of Amerikkka present:  Immanuel Wilkins Quartet, 75 Dollar Bill, Ka Baird @ bryant park, 40th-42nd / 5th & 6th, mnhtn //

i like roulette & these ppl (haven't seen wilkins tons, but if you're a shredder & ID as a "radical abolitionist" then i'm a fan), so am listing this one single "bryant park picnic performance" –– but the entire series is "presented" by Bank of America, & while boa doesn't disgust me quite as viscerally as capital one, plz remember:

bank of america was one of the biggest contributors to the subprime mortgage crisis; they f*cked ppl over during the pandemic, freezing accounts so ppl couldn't access benefits & misleading small businesses about ppp loans; & courts are hearing arguments abt their racial discrimination in maintenance of foreclosed homes, which is to say that they targeted POC with predatory loans, stole their homes when they couldn't meet payments, & then let properties & buildings in majority Black / Latinx neighborhoods go to sh*t (tho they cleaned up for white ppl). they're also among the major banks profiting the most from packaging police-brutality settlement bonds –– literally profiting from cop murders –– and many think it's not a coincidence that the banks most directly profiting from police brutality (like bank of america) are also the biggest donors to performing arts organizations.

TL;DR: bank of america fucking sucks; they pour $$ into the arts in hopes that we will forgive them; it's our job to never forget. and while it's an admittedly smaller thing: roulette, who i like, woof! their page for this event makes a point to claim these artists –– the copy begins, "Former Roulette Resident Artists Immanuel Wilkins and Ka Baird, along with frequent Roulette performers 75 Dollar Bill" –– & the evident pride of affiliation makes the artwash-y pitch that follows ("...part of Bryant Park Picnic Performances presented by Bank of America, a free outdoor festival that welcomes all New Yorkers to experience the city’s vibrant arts and culture") even more heartbreaking. tl;dr pt.2: if you really respect a person, don't say their name with your mouth still dirty from the sisyphean task of trying to suck a big bank's d*ck clean!

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...hmm well i admittedly haven't slept in a while & maybe am not at peak ability to gauge tone, but i feel like these are both super reasoned takes that will def be received well??? time to post them both to the internet, together!! :D

also sorry if below are (still) outta order, trying to post to website on phone before putting on insta, will fix later, LUV U

TEXT (white on black background):

WHY IS
NASDAQ
PRESENTING
THIS?

[over picture of kwami, head down & face hidden, both hands visible & on two of three trumpets she's clutching together, & they all have these beautiful / strange ~attachments~ & stuff, painted & with tangly wires & bits of fabric, actually one of the BEST parts is covered up by text so maybe i'll put an unedited version online sometime]

WHEN ART INSTITUTIONS
HELP WHITEWASH
BIG TECH & BIG BANKS

IN EXCHANGE
FOR WHATEVER
TAX WRITEOFF DONATIONS

WE KNOW
THE LARGER PLAYER
HAS MORE 2 GAIN

JUST AS
ARTIST RESIDENCIES
CAN BE GREAT!

BUT AGAIN,
*THE INSTITUTION*
BENEFITS MORE

THEY GENERATE MORE
CAPITAL (OF ALL KINDS]
FROM AN AFFILIATION
WITH "THEIR" ARTISTS
THAN VICE VERSA

MY VOTE: ORGS SHOULD
NOT INVITE PPL TO PLAY
EVENTS PRESENTED BY
NASDAO OR BANK OF AMERICA

LAUNDERING THE REPS OF EVIL
ACTORS FOR CASH = BAD

MAKING "YOUR" ARTISTS
APPEAR COMPLICIT?
*UNACCEPTABLE *

... ESP. SINCE
ARTISTS I'VE TALKED TO
*WERE NOT TOLD*
WHO WAS PRESENTING
THESE SHOWS.

DON'T MAKE ARTISTS
DO THE EXTRA LABOR
OF RESEARCH 2 SEE
IF U SOLD THEM OUT!!

I'M TALKING ABT
MULTIPLE ORGS THAT
DO GREAT WORK!!
(PLZ DON'T HATE ME!!!)

BUT SRSLY
WE'RE ON A PRECIPICE
IF NOT PITCHED OVER

IT'S TIME TO
SEARCH [FOR] OUR SOULS

2023 AS YEAR OF BOTH
THE EXISTENTIAL CRISIS
& THE OBVIOUS EPIPHANY:

WE WILL ORGANIZE & RESIST
THE EVILS OF OUR TIME,
OR NOT,
& EITHER WAY WE WILL DIE

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ [shruggie emoticon]

COSMIC SHRUGGIE ASKS:
WLD U BE SATISFIED
IF U KNEW THIS WAS IT?