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It used to be that the most annoying thing about Morrissey was that he might force an arena to stop selling hot dogs the night he played there.
But recently, the former Smiths frontman's dietary militancy is probably the least problematic thing about him. His right-wing political views have led to boycotts and record store bans, not to mention abysmal ticket sales. Fellow musicians to written long screeds denouncing him. And now, even his fans are turning against him.
A video from last night's concert at Portland's Moda Center shows the singer stopping his performance to deal with a protester in his own audience, who can be seen holding a pair of signs: one depicting a crossed-out logo for the far-right British political party For Britain, the other reading "Bigmouth Indeed," a reference to the Smiths song "Bigmouth Strikes Again."
Morrissey halts the show, asks for the lights to be turned up, and refuses to continue playing until the protester is ejected from the venue.
"Let's be quite frank," he says, "when you with the sign are removed, I will continue. Otherwise, get out, now." He then repeatedly says "Go" and "We don't need you" until the protester leaves, taking a bow on the way out.
Morrissey has expressed support for For Britain, which espouses anti-Islamic views, and wore a pin bearing their logo when he performed on The Tonight Show in May. He later, um, "clarified" his position, arguing that he isn't racist because "everyone ultimately prefers their own race."
This is the second time in less than two years a Morrissey show in Portland has caused controversy: A man sued two event organizers last year alleging he was the victim of a homophobic attack by a security guard during a Morrissey concert at the Schnitz on Halloween in 2017.
In other news, Morrissey's scheduled tour stop tonight in Seattle has been cancelled for unspecific reasons. Ah, well.