A member of the Hammond City Council agrees with the way the city handled Chief Keef’s hologram appearance at an all-day concert Saturday, although he’d rather it have been a situation of understanding rather than cutting off communication.
Councilman Anthony Higgs, D-3rd, who has been outspoken regarding race relations in the city, said Monday if the contract indicated Chief Keef couldn’t perform at Craze Fest, its promoters were wrong to allow the hologram of the rapper to be shown. He’s aware that much of the rapper’s music glorifies violence, and he said no one in the city administration would approve it being brought in.
“The promoter (Malcom Jones and Devon Bonaparte, of Craze Fest, and Alki David, CEO of Hologram USA) should’ve gotten a clearer understanding of what the contract said, because you can’t go around a binding contract,” Higgs said.
Higgs gets the impression, however, that Chief Keef, whose real name is Keith Cozart, could be trying to change his message to one that fosters peace. And if that’s the case, people should give him a chance to be heard.
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“I could be wrong, but I think he’s trying, and he’s doing it in the way he knows how — through his concerts. And if he is, we shouldn’t eliminate him from the process,” Higgs said. “None of us are perfect, so I think Father (Michael) Pfleger (of St. Sabina Church in Chicago’s Auburn Gresham neighborhood) and the ministers in Chicago should give him a chance. It’s only fair.
“People listen to his music. He’s reaching people, so he’s got a lot of influence.”
Steve Sersic, attorney for the Hammond Port Authority, which oversees the Wolf Lake Pavilion, on Monday described the contract between Craze Fest Promoters and the city “as a license agreement that provides the city can revoke the license at any time for any reason, or no reason at all.” The contract also has an addendum that says the promoter must follow safety directives issued by the Hammond police, fire or any other emergency management services.
As well, the contract “preserves the right to refuse lewd or indecent performances,” but what happened with Chief Keef didn’t fall under that description, but one of safety, police said Saturday.
“With recent violence associated with (Chief Keef), the police thought showing the hologram had the potential to incite violence,” Sersic said. “The perspective was that if there was any reasonable chance of even one person getting injured, why expose anyone to it? Plus, with like-minded acts the whole day, there was no intention to suppress any sort of speech.
“It was completely a safety issue.”
Chief Keef appeared via hologram at the end of an all-day benefit for a toddler and a friend of the rapper’s who were killed this month in Chicago. The show was originally scheduled to take place last week at the Redmoon Theater in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, but pressure from City Hall, which said the show “posed a significant public safety risk,” caused the theater to cancel the event.
The Chicago native then planned a show at an undisclosed location, at first thought to be in Chicago but ending up in Hammond. The event also featured rappers Lil Bibby, Jacqueese, Tink and Riff Raff, organizers said.
Chief Keef partnered with Los Angeles-based Hologram USA to beam his performance to Indiana from a soundstage in Beverly Hills, Calif. The rapper, who has had various legal troubles in Illinois, opted not to return to the Midwest, citing several outstanding warrants.
Organizers encouraged fans to donate $50 to benefit the families of 13-month-old Dillan Harris and Marvin Carr, 22, who were killed July 11. Dillan was killed in the city’s Woodlawn neighborhood by a vehicle fleeing the scene of a shooting that killed Carr, a rapper who went by the name Capo and was an associate of Chief Keef.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.