By Cihara Mathieu ’26
Source for photo above: David Martinez
Do you have that one viral sped-up TikTok sound stuck in your head and why is it a Steve Lacy song?
Almost all of Gen-Z has heard Steve Lacy at least once this year. His recent album “Gemini Rights” has been a smash hit amongst teenagers and young adults alike. The album’s lead single “Bad Habit” has gone viral on every social media app you could imagine from Instagram to Facebook (which means that there’s a chance your mom has heard of him) and was #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart for 3 weeks.
Despite his undeniable success, Lacy has been in hot water following a string of viral videos depicting the musician treating fans poorly at his concerts. The first video to go viral showed Lacy taking a fan’s disposable camera before smashing it on the ground and storming off stage-ending the concert before its planned finale.
Multiple people that attended the concert have said that Lacy’s reaction was “justified” and that the owner of the camera had been throwing it at Lacy all night, which resulted in the incident that was captured on video.
At another concert, an audience member yelled, “Can you say hi to my mom?” in the middle of Lacy’s “Helmet” to which he harshly replied, “can you be quiet?” Safe to say this did not go over well with some fans and only added to the online criticism of the “Gemini Rights” creator.
Multiple other videos of the musician’s concerts have gone viral and none of them seem to be depicting Lacy in a good light. He has become somewhat of a joke on Tiktok, with memes making fun of his harsh reactions to fans which in turn garner thousands to millions of likes on the app. Lacy, however, believes he owes no one an apology.
Lacy released a statement on his Instagram, saying, “My shows have been fun […] shoutout to the people not throwing disposable cameras at me and just coming to catch a vibe and connect. I had a really good time […] last night. I hate that the beauty of the connection I have with so many people in the crowd gets [lost] when something negative happens.” He continued, “I don’t believe I owe anyone an apology […]. I’m a real person with feelings and real reactions.”
Fans on Tiktok have accepted his apology while others are still on the fence on whether or not to give him another chance. Some people blame the disruptive concertgoers and accuse them of only buying tickets to hear “Bad Habit” live. Others say that Lacy had no right to react like that and go as far as to label him as “unprofessional.” Fans have even started to compare him to the infamous Justin Bieber, who is notorious for throwing temper tantrums at his concerts.
These situations have seriously made me consider the musicians I spend my time listening to. Despite being a fan of his music, especially his newer releases, I don’t think there is any way to justify his behavior toward his fans, the people who paid upward of $410 to experience his music live. Yes, I fully agree that throwing objects and causing a ruckus should result in accountability but Lacy should have reacted professionally, not in the way that he had handled it.
But the real question is: should Steve Lacy be canceled? The answer to this question is a stone-cold no. Artists who have done much more controversial things (for example: Kanye West for anti-semitism & Chris Brown for multiple physical abuse allegations) are still relevant in the entertainment industry and have millions of fans supporting them. So, why should Lacy be canceled for a couple of incidents which only show one side of the story? In that case, Justin Bieber who has done the same thing Lacy has done on multiple occasions should also be canceled.
While some might argue that Lacy’s actions are worthy of canceling, I argue that losing his temper is just one of his bad habits.
