Local musician Colt Graves was scheduled to perform next week for the finale of Friday After 5. It was announced Thursday that the performance had been canceled by FA5, but Graves posted on social media Friday saying he’s now organizing his own free community concert.
Graves was the first to make an announcement about the canceled performance Thursday.
He wrote in a Facebook post on his artist page: “Unfortunately, Friday After 5 has decided to not move forward with my performance scheduled for September 1st in Owensboro. We were notified today that we would not be allowed to perform due to my personality and performances being deemed as not family-friendly.”
FA5 Executive Director Francine Marseille said there were multiple issues that led to the cancellation. Marseille said that at least three sponsors had pulled out due to “various actions over the last few weeks” by Graves, but also claimed the main factor was that Graves was unable to fulfill his contract of performing two 90-minute sets.
“We had some difficulty with him creating a show due to his lack of being able to provide two 90-minute sets. We talked with (his management team) and tried to find solutions,” she said on Thursday.
Marseille said again on Friday that the parties had agreed to a pair of 90-minute sets, but said she later was told Graves only knew enough material to do a 30-minute set and that he was planning to bring other local artists on stage to help fill the time.
An email from Graves’ team on Saturday morning said: “We had verbal approval from FA5 that we could have openers, they then said they were not approved a little over a week before the show because of stage logistics, so we agreed to play the full set length required which the contract originally stated was 2 hours of music. They then told us we would be responsible for 3 hours of music, which is a lot more than we anticipated, but we assured them that we were capable and that it would not be an issue. They told us that they did not have a sponsor for the stage, but were still going to make sure we could perform even if they had to pay for it themselves.”
Graves’ team said at that point, they believed the issue had been resolved and there were no concerns.
“Then we enter this week where it is brought to our attention that content on social media has caused concern with the board, so we were notified that the board took a vote and decided to remove us from the show. Citing that my image did not align with the values and family-friendly nature of FA5,” the team said. “So a statement was made on my Facebook page stating WHY the show was cancelled based on what was relayed to us, and FA5 released a statement reiterating exactly what we said.”
Marseille on Thursday briefly addressed Graves’ post saying FA5 deemed him not family-friendly. She noted that earlier on Thursday, Graves updated the profile image on his artist page on Facebook.
In the image, Graves has both middle fingers up and pointed at the camera, and the text of the post reads “I’m just saying what everyone else is thinking.” Marseille said it was a “very disruptive post,” adding it was the latest of some actions that FA5 “just can’t support” that occurred over the last few weeks.
She claimed that, combined with the inability to fulfill the contract, all led to the cancellation.
Marseille also said three sponsors had pulled out, a message that was echoed in a post on the FA5 Facebook page Thursday evening:
“Friday After 5 is an event fully funded by our generous sponsors. At times the values of our sponsors may not agree with our scheduled entertainment. For weeks we have worked to support our choice and attempted to resolve many concerns. Unfortunately, issues were unable to be rectified, leaving us no choice but to cancel the performance. We were hoping to showcase one of our own on this final night, however recent activities have led to loss of sponsorships. Friday After 5 works hard to provide the best entertainment possible.”
Marseille said the loss of sponsorships wasn’t the reason the show was canceled, claiming she was willing to foot the bill for the performance, and again claimed the contract dispute was the main issue.
“I was willing to pay out of pocket to help get him on the stage,” Marseille said. “I was willing to take my Social Security money out to pay for him to perform.”
Graves’ fans have taken to social media over the last two days to show their frustration with the decision to cancel the performance. Marseille said she understands there are people upset with the decision and she still wishes Graves success in his career.
Graves recorded a live video on his personal Facebook page Friday addressing the public reaction. After thanking people for showing support over the last couple of days, he said “Let’s not take out anger on the businesses that don’t have anything to do with it. … Let’s not take it out on the sponsors. … Even though you’re upset, don’t take it out on these guys. We’re supposed to bring each other up.”
In the email, Graves’ team said “I am disappointed with the outcome of all of this, but the community has shown me so much support and I am very thankful for my hometown.”
Graves also announced via his artist page that he was planning to do a free community concert. Within 3 hours, he updated the post to say sponsorships had been filled. No other details have been announced yet.
As for the finale of Friday After 5, Todd Tilghman will return to the stage. Tilghman, winner of “The Voice” Season 18, performed at Friday After 5 earlier this summer.
In July, Graves announced he had signed a record deal with multi-platinum artist and producer Timbaland. That news came less than 2 months after Graves, a Calhoun native who now resides in Owensboro, released the viral hit “Dirt on Me.” The song peaked near the top of several country charts, but more importantly caught the attention of Timbaland.
