Is it right to separate the art from the artist?

Singer, Rex Orange County, performing live. Picture source: Skyler Pradhan

In today’s world, celebrity scandals pop out left, right, and centre. And in a time where cancel culture has risen to huge popularity, artists are now dropping like flies. And some deservedly so. When listening to an artist’s music after a major controversy, it can sometimes feel uneasy and wrong. So, it begs the question, is it right to listen to an artist regardless of their terrible actions? And if not, where do we draw that line?

Many recent examples include the 24-year-old singer-songwriter, Rex Orange County. His real name, Alexander O’Connor, was recently charged with six counts of sexual abuse against his partner. This blew up all over social media causing his career to be flushed down the toilet in a matter of hours. It posed a massive shock in his music fandom. Rex was known as this sweet and loveable character, releasing music that resonated with many. His actions reminded us of the phrase, ‘never judge a book by its cover.’

Another example, who isn’t new to controversy, is Kanye West. Ye, caught up in his millionth scandal, seemed to finally bite off more than he can chew. His anti-Semitic comments on Twitter and his new ‘White Lives Matter’ hoodie, saw many of his fashion partnerships part ways with the musician. The biggest one was with Adidas. The brand was known to be in collaboration with the billionaire in producing his famous Yeezy shoes.

Kanye meeting with Donald Trump in 2018.

With these scandals, is it morally okay to keep supporting these artists by continuously listening to their music? After the Rex news, we saw many fans via TikTok, and other social media platforms, enraged. With many recording themselves throwing merchandise away and tearing down posters. With Ye fans, not as much anger. A funny comment of "he made Graduation” trended around social media. Explaining that despite his controversial personality, he still makes great music that many fans still enjoy.

This poses the question; how big should the scandal be to cancel this person off fully? Does the line get crossed on physical abuse rather than verbal? Another controversial case was in 2019, where the famous film ‘Joker’ used a Gary Glitter song. The British musician was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment due to a number of child sex offences. The scene in the movie quickly became iconic giving the song, and Gary, a platform.

After the film, Glitter was going to be paid ‘hundreds of thousands’ in royalties according to the Sun. Which would’ve been disgraceful. However, according to the New York Times, the convict is to reap no benefits for his song.

In an interview with PEOPLE, a spokesperson for Snapper Music said: "We’ve owned the Master rights since Feb 1997 and [Glitter] is not entitled to, nor have we paid, any royalties or share of synch fees or other monies from the catalogue to him.”

Gary Glitter arrives home after spending the day being questioned by detectives. Picture source: Andy Thornley

When fully grasping the question of whether it's right, it may depend. Listening to a convicted paedophile despite the quality of the music will feel wrong for most human beings. Other artists like Kanye, he doesn't have any blatant racist or anti-Semitic comments in his songs, yet... And Rex’s music still involves great messages that may help some listeners despite the awful person who is singing them. At the end of the day, it is your choice to do so as you please. But be wary, it could be your favourite artist next…