Conor Oberst has written an open letter to Charlie Levy of Stateside Presents, an Arizona-based music promoter who has pleaded with artists to return to his state.
In the letter, published by Billboard, Oberst acknowledged the troubles the boycott will cause local businesses, that the musician's side of the protest is "symbolic" and doubts that authors and supporters of SB1070 "could give a shit whether or not my band, or any other Artist, every plays Arizona again", but he remains firm in his resolve.He says "the sports industry, entertainment industry, the tourism and convention industry, other state and city governments, private businesses and individuals from around the country and the world" need to be a part of it. He says "The boycott has to be so widespread and devastating that the Arizona State Legislature and Governor have no choice but to repeat their unconstitutional, immoral and hateful law."
"What I would encourage you to do, if you haven't already started, is to organize with all the local businesses you can to put as much pressure as possible on your State Government until the Law is repealed. An economic death rattle is the only cry of outrage they will hear."
So far artists that have joined The Sound Strike include Ben Harper, Nine Inch Nails, Billy Bragg, Steve Earle, Cypress Hill, Conor Oberst, Rage Against The Machine, Kanye West, Massive Attack, Sonic Youth and many more.
If you're an artist, you can add your support by clicking here.
Check out Oberst talking about the protest and the law below:
Conor Oberst for The Sound Strike from Producciones Cimarrón on Vimeo.
Follow the author Tim Cashmere on Twitter.
