Concert lineup upsets some victim families

In a little less than a month some of the biggest names in music will be taking the stage in a concert designed to promote healing among the Virginia Tech community. While the concert, which will include performances by  Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer, Phil Vassar and Nas,  has been put together to help the university community move forward in the aftermath of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, it  has instead caused outrage among several of the victim’s families.

Some parents of the victims of the April 16 shootings are pleading with organizers to reconsider the concert’s lineup after it was announced that Def Jam recording artist Nas is one of the four artists scheduled to appear.  The violent lyrics of some the rapper’s songs have been cause for concern among the victim’s families who maintain that the decision to include Nas in the lineup shows a lack of respect for victims of April 16.

Spokesman for the families, Vincent J. Bove, said  that the parent’s anger stems from the decision to include an artist whose music includes songs such as “Shoot ‘Em Up,”  found on Nas’ 1999 album Nastradamus. At least seven of the families have argued that the lyrics are inappropriate in light of the circumstances surrounding the show.

Nas' lyrics "are indicative of the moral decay in our society that contributes to acts of violence," Bove told The Washington Post. "For a university official to condone it or to be clueless of what this person's track record is, it's unconscionable beyond belief."

Despite the recent controversy, university officials maintain that the overall response to the concert has been positive and they have no plans to make any changes to the lineup.

"Literally within minutes of the concert's announcement, we received a tremendous positive response," said university spokesman Chris Clough.  "Among those who have responded have been families who thought it was a tremendously positive note to start the academic year."