Through a lengthy Instagram post on Monday, Princess Nokia announced the cancellation of her upcoming June 5 performance during Indie Rocks’ week-long anniversary celebration in Mexico City. In the post, she explains that she is using the time to focus on activism.
“Due to the recent travesties that are affecting the geopolitical spectrum in America and its people, I feel it is my obligation to refocus my energy on helping and creating affecting change in the most efficient way possible,” her statement reads. The New York rapper mentions the current state of Puerto Rico post-Hurricane María and its growing death toll, which is now believed to exceed 4,600, 70 times greater than the official number. Nokia also cites recent news about the Department of Health and Human Services losing track of 1,500 migrant children, most of them Salvadoran, Honduran, and Guatemalan.
Mexico-based fans are already voicing their disappointment in the comments of the post. The A Girl Cried Red rapper extended her apologies, asking them to be supportive and understanding. “I must use my time as efficient[ly] as I can, as I am being called spiritually to help those in these matters. I must cancel this show to set aside time and use my privileges, resources, and platform for this humanitarian cause,” she wrote.
Although she hasn’t expressed the way she will help these communities in need, Destiny Frasqueri has been involved in several social justice and humanitarian initiatives, most notably setting up an independent disaster relief fund for Hurricane María victims in Puerto Rico, which benefited seven different community organizations. She also made the headlines when she threw soup at a man after he used racist slurs to refer to a group of teenagers on a New York subway train.
In the post, Nokia clarified that her upcoming House of Vans gig in Chicago on June 8 is still on.
Read the full post below.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjnWc2zAdy4/
Update, 6/5/2018 at 7:59 p.m.: Indie Rocks! has responded to Princess Nokia’s cancellation announcement. A press release claims Nokia cancelled the show without notifying the organizers, her booking agent, or her management. Remezcla will update this post once more information becomes available.