This week, my public relations class focused on crisis management. What better way to apply what I have learned than by examining a modern case of social media cancel culture?
Content creator Meg (@meganator__) recently posted a review video describing her experience at musician Sombr’s concert in Washington, DC. In it, she compared the concert to a “middle school dance,” and noted that she was one of few adults there. She recounted how tweens were plowing through the crowd, spilling drinks and taking photos everywhere, none of which she was expecting. When Sombr finally took the stage, he began making “brain rot” and “6-7” jokes, alongside other niche references that only a 13- to 15-year-old audience would understand and find funny. However, his humor was accompanied by inappropriate comments; at one point, he even paused between songs to tell the audience to bark for him, adding, “Yeah, I’m daddy.” Meg also criticized his singing and stage presence, which she found to be lacking. She concluded her review by advising adults not to attend his concerts, as it seemed primarily geared toward tweens.
This post quickly gained attention, prompting Sombr to respond. In his video, he started by restating Meg’s complaints: “There were too many tweens there and too many brain rot jokes.” He also acknowledged a wave of body-shaming comments he has been receiving, particularly noting that she referred to him as “Slenderman” in her video. Sombr then addressed the age of his crowd, stating, “I am a 20-year-old artist — freshly 20 — and if you are 25 years old and you are going to come to my concert and not expect people younger than you to be there, when I, the artist, am five years younger than you, it’s just a skill issue.” He went on to defend the jokes made at the concert, saying that he has “never uttered a serious word” in his life. He closed by emphasizing that people of every gender, age, race and sexuality are welcome at his shows, and finished off the response by recording himself touching grass.
When the backlash began, Sombr was faced with three possible ways to respond: (1) ignore the criticism and allow the fans to react; (2) craft a thoughtful response that rose above the criticism; or (3) crash out, which is the path he ultimately chose. As a result, his response was poorly executed. The biggest issue Meg voiced was not that the concert was full of tweens; it was the inappropriate jokes Sombr made to that young audience. He completely ignored this complaint, worsening the situation by refusing to take accountability. Additionally, he alienated older fans through his word choice and constant references to the age difference.
Here is how Sombr should have approached his response:
Sombr could have acknowledged Meg’s criticism by saying something like, “I’m sorry that you didn’t enjoy this particular concert and that it didn’t meet your expectations. Hopefully, I’ll do better next time. If you give me the chance again, you’ll enjoy the next show.” He should then have addressed the inappropriate comments directly by saying, “I’m sorry if my humor made anyone uncomfortable. I genuinely misjudged the audience, and I recognize those kinds of jokes are only appropriate at 18+ venues. I am still learning how to navigate performing, be mindful of my audience and develop as an artist.”
All that said, people are entitled to their opinions, and as an artist, Sombr must understand that he will face constant criticism throughout his career. He recognizes that he is a newer artist, which means he has space to continue to learn. The video should be taken down, however, as it is damaging to his image and only escalates the situation. I am not sure whether this response came at the advice of his PR team or on his own accord, but consider this article my application to join Sombr’s PR team, because he clearly could use some assistance.