I’m sure most of you saw the story of the Gay Men’s Chorus and the San Diego Padres national anthem fiasco. Long story short the Gay chorus was supposed to sing the anthem to a music track over the PA but instead of the music track the woman who sang it the night before’s recording went over it. The DJ released a statement and while I am typically skeptical of excuses this one rings true for me. I worked in music radio for a number of years and it is surprising how many times the wrong button gets pushed and your brain shuts down due to panic. I thought the Padres statement last night was woefully insufficient but it appears they went farther today and have asked the chorus to come back an0other night to sing it.
Anyway here is the statement:
Artie Ojeda NBC 7 San Diego
The DJ who accidentally played the wrong music for the San Diego Gay Men's Chorus National Anthem performance sent me this apology.I spoke to him personally, and I can tell you, he is genuinely upset. His voice was breaking up.
“My deepest apologies and sincere regret toward the entire San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus & the LGBT community for the incident that occurred during the National Anthem. It was a very unfortunate mistake but it was just that, an error. I in no way, shape ...or form directed any type of hate, bad intent or discrimination towards the chorus or anyone involved. The incident was not a representation of myself, San Diego, & it’s amazing Baseball fans. I have felt the consequences of my mistake as a dream job has dissolved before my eyes which does not take away that I am extremely sorry for the horrible mistake that occurred. I have family members & friends that are a part of the LGBT community and I have always been a supporter of Equal Human Rights, so it pains me greatly to see that I am being accused of acting intentionally. As a former high school and college baseball player, I understand the importance of ensuring equality for all in sports and am appalled by some of the negative, homophobic comments made by fans related to the National Anthem incident. I have reached out to LGBT leaders in San Diego and am currently in discussion regarding a meeting with the Chorus and LGBT leaders personally in order to be as constructive as possible about the error. I’ve let down my city, my family and everyone who had faith in me. Once again, I’m truly sorry for this entire ordeal.” - DJ ARTFORM
