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Morrissey has completed a new studio album titled Bonfire of Teenagers, but no record company has wanted to release it yet because the artist is suffering a campaign of attempted cancellation, accused of being “far right.”
Steven Patrick Morrissey, known artistically as Morrissey, rose to stardom in the 1980s as the frontman of the legendary rock band The Smiths. After five years of success with The Smiths, he began a fruitful career as a solo artist, with 14 solo albums. His musical career is considered one of the most influential and key in the emergence of the indie rock and Britpop scene.
Despite keeping his private life very discreet, Morrissey has been involved in several controversies due to his strong political convictions and his activism in issues such as the defense of animals. Along with Paul and Linda McCartney, Morrissey has been one of the most recognizable faces of the vegan movement in recent times.
Precisely in relation to the vegan issue he made statements to The Guardian in 2010 that put him in the spotlight of the leftist cancellation culture. He assured that “you can’t help but think that the Chinese are a subspecies”, due to the mistreatment that, according to him, they inflict on animals.
When accused of being a racist, Morrissey replied in an interview that “the word is meaningless now. Everybody ultimately prefers their own race…does that make everyone racist?”.
This kind of statements are probably the reason why he still hasn’t found any record label willing to release his latest album, after he announced last November on his own website the breaking of his contract with the BMG label.
He has also used his own page to announce what, according to him, is “the best album of my life”, as a conclusion of “the worst year of my life.” On his website he explains that the album is available for release “to the highest (or lowest) bidder.”
Other Morrissey controversies
Morrissey has not only been outspoken in his statements regarding animal advocacy, but has also held politically incorrect and controversial views on issues such as immigration.
“I’ve never intended to be controversial, but it’s very easy to be controversial in pop music because nobody ever is,” Morrissey has defended.
The truth is that he has earned a reputation for being controversial with statements such as that “London is degraded” by immigration, or for mocking the accent of London Mayor Sadiq Khan, of Pakistani descent. “He cannot talk properly!”, Morrissey claimed.
Asked by the German newspaper Der Spiegel about the Harvey Weinstein case, Morrissey declared, “I hate rape. I hate attacks. I hate sexual situations imposed on someone. But in many cases, one looks at the circumstances and thinks that the person referred to as victim is merely disappointed.”
These kinds of statements, far removed from the progressive narrative, have earned Morrissey accusations of supporting the alt-right, especially after Morrissey posted a video on his website in summer 2019 of a conservative youtuber talking about “social justice morons,” and espousing ideas such as the “white replacement theory” of white Europeans, complaining about the proliferation of “rape and terrorist attacks as a result of mass immigration.”
While other artists may come out openly in favor of leftist or even radical leftist ideas, when an artist shows support for conservative ideas – as Morrissey has done – he or she is in danger of being accused of being a right-wing extremist and being terminated.
Ignacio Manuel García Medina, Business Management teacher. Artist and lecturer specialized in Popular Culture for various platforms. Presenter of the program "Pop Libertario" for the Juan de Mariana Institute. Lives in the Canary Islands, Spain // Ignacio M. García Medina es profesor de Gestión de Empresas. Es miembro del Instituto Juan de Mariana y conferenciante especializado en Cultura Popular e ideas de la Libertad.
Social Networks: @ignaciomgm