In a recent confrontation between Beyoncé fans and a country radio station in Oklahoma, accusations of racism have been wielded as a tool to bully, gaslight, and intimidate. This has led to the proliferation of Fake News headlines, more or less subtly painting the station and country music as a whole as the antagonist in the unfolding drama.
What actually happened? Well, what started as a simple song request quickly morphed into accusations of racism and discrimination.
The controversy began when Justin McGowan, a listener of KYKC, a country music station in Ada, requested that they play "Texas Hold ’Em," one of Beyoncé's latest releases which ventures in the Country genre. However, his request was met with a blunt rejection from the station manager, Roger Harris, citing the station's dedication to country music.
NOTE: Not everyone watches the Superbowl and not everyone keeps up with the latest Beyoncé news, including her surprise announcement of venturing into the Country genre. Keep this in mind as we move forward before calling the station racist.
This rejection sparked outrage among Beyoncé's fanbase, who accused the station of racial bias and exclusion.
In response to the backlash, Harris clarified the station's stance, explaining that they were initially unaware of Beyoncé's new song. He emphasized that KYKC has played Beyoncé's music on their other stations and holds no prejudice against her or any other artist. Rather, their decision was based on a lack of awareness to the fact that Beyoncé has started releasing music in the country genre.
Harris revealed that KYKC struggled to obtain the song due to limited access to record companies, which often prioritize larger stations. Despite these challenges, the station eventually acquired the song and decided to play it in response to overwhelming fan support and the fact that they were made aware that the song itself is within the country style that the radio station is dedicated to.
In the end, the clash between Beyoncé's fans and KYKC serves as a microcosm of how liberals try to find racism anywhere and every where in order to gaslight those around them to get their way. In this circumstance, everything came down to a simple misunderstanding and it wasn't racism. The kneejerk reaction seems to be "racism". Perhaps we should learn to make our kneejerk reaction "understanding".
