Modern Baseball have made their way onto our blog several times in the past month, usually as a tie-in with the release of their most recent record (Holy Ghost), but this post is different. This is a story about a band recognizing an opportunity to not only further engage with fans, but help them, and how practically every other artist working today should follow their lead.
Modern Baseball is currently preparing to embark on their North American headlining tour with Joyce Manor and Thin Lips. With the tour start growing closer by the day, the band has announced the creation of a help hotline that fans can text during shows for assistance if they are feeling unsafe. Maybe this means they are being verbally harassed by fellow concert-goers, or perhaps they are worried about the possibility of assault. Whatever the case, Modern Baseball is taking a proactive approach to ensuring everyone is able to enjoy their time seeing the band.
To get word out about the hotline, Modern Baseball has paired with Screaming Females singer and artist Marissa Paternoster and artist Perry Shall to create a brief animated video explaining the hotline. Fans at shows feeling unsafe are encouraged to text (201)731-6626. MTV News has a great interview with singers/guitarists Brendan Lukens and Jacob Ewald today explaining the creation of the hotline and the importance of safe space. You can view the video below:
The alternative music scene has been overwhelmed by stories of assault and harassment over the past two years, but Modern Baseball are one of the few bands we’ve found that are taking a direct approach to making fans feel safe at their performances. A hotline like the one mentioned above is not expensive or all that hard to setup, so maybe this move will inspire others to do something similar.
