Anyone know why the Matt Good subreddit went private?

[tristan]

Some long essays here rationalizing MG's actions - the sheer length required is telling in and of itself.  Cancel culture?  Get real, this is about one's own compass.  It is clear MG was a manipulative, hypocritical narcissist right up to December 20, 2020.  Despite all the failings and second chances of the past, some of which we knew about, MG has not learned or grown and that has hurt a number of real people.  At 49 years old, we see first hand the continuation of all the wreckage of the past - be it the webmasters, bandmates, exes, female fans - it continues to this day.  How could I claim any growth of my own by turning a blind eye?  How can I listen to the songs with detachment, when he himself claims that his fucked up nature of hurting others over and over is supposedly necessary for their creation?  And now he sits silent, ostensibly hoping for this to blow over rather than take the opportunity to show some degree of growth.  I guess when you sleep in a van to cultivate art, they let you do it.  Good times while it lasted, now it's over.

[THE MAN]

I can't believe anyone is shocked that someone could live 49 years without growing, learning or improving themselves.

 

If you look at the vast majority of people, they never change their ways or habits in any meaningful way. Some people are just... kinda stupid in that way... We might listen to one! I know tons of people that fit that bill, I'm sure you all do. That's just humans for ya.

 

Granted, blaming bi-polar on your personal dysfunction IS a pretty lame cop-out after so long. The real kicker is acting holier-than-thou about it. If my rage issues made me punch someone, it's still my fist which I threw and I'm just as responsible.

 

But I still ask, why is examination of the artist's failed personal morals held as so vital in how you judge the music? Not to say you CAN'T go ahead and think what you want of the guy... but it's still what you think of him, not the songs. I personally find it hard to factor in details of someone's personal life that I shouldn't even realistically KNOW ABOUT, except we live in an online world and it's easy for someone to tell their story to a large audience. How many family/friends do you even know THIS MUCH about what their intimate relationships are like? It's creepy to me to be so involved with a strangers life. Relationships sometimes make people fuckin' lunatic psychos, it's true. Stay away from them, it's easy to spot. But how much of this is really, solely, between the people involved and how much is truly fitting for public debate?

 

To me this as reasonable as digging through the personal lives of every forum member here, and making posts about what I've learned you've done. Imagine if someone here refused to communicate with anyone they deemed a moral failure after. It's kind of unfair seeing as how someone is just digging up your fuck ups because "people need to know". And NO I'm not excusing his behavior, I'm just saying that making the mental association between hearing Matthew Good and immediate anger/disappointment at his personal failings that you shouldn't REALLY be privy to is not entirely reasonable. This is still a private matter even if people are hurt.

 

It is at least positive to reinforce to people that you shouldn't waste your efforts on someone you know is a manipulative exploiter. Friend, family OR intimate relationships! Of course, some people never learn THAT either and the cycle of abuse continues regardless of any abuser's status, standing or value.

 

Do we all really want to live in a world where this is how we judge each other? Where your personal failings WILL BE public failings for you to be ostracized for in perpetuity by strangers?

 

Everyone reading this has fucked up, caused harm, acted poorly or just been a shitty person at SOME point in life. But it doesn't mean your low points should be the topic of debate amongst complete strangers. It CAN be but i don't see it being a good thing for us all.

 

But if you dislike MG now that's totally cool too. it's not entirely unreasonable. But just remember that there's basically something to really dislike about everyone if you look close enough. Some people just make it easier to spot.

[uglyredhonda]

36 minutes ago, THE MAN said:

Everyone reading this has fucked up, caused harm, acted poorly or just been a shitty person at SOME point in life. But it doesn't mean your low points should be the topic of debate amongst complete strangers. It CAN be but i don't see it being a good thing for us all.

 

But that's the risk you take when you become famous. If you don't want your fans talking about you, be a decent person. If you unwittingly do shitty things, apologize.

 

It's no different than in real life. People tend to be more forgiving of someone if they're contrite about their actions, if they show that they're making an effort to be a good person. But it's not uncommon to bail on a friend if it turns out that they're willfully and unapologetically cruel.

 

A few years ago, I spent months watching a good friend verbally abuse his wife, and saw him get physical with her once. His personality had changed slightly after suffering a brain condition earlier that year, but I later found out that he had behaved similarly prior to it happening - he had just been able to conceal it better.

 

I fought it for months, but I eventually realized I couldn't be friends with them anymore. His wife is an amazing, kind woman, and I couldn't witness those things happening to her. By the account of our mutual friends who still hang out with them, he still verbally abuses her, and everyone just chalks it up to "who he is" after the brain condition. ("Yes, he calls her stupid, but he's just kidding around.") She seems okay with it, he makes no effort to apologize, and he hasn't sought out any treatment/therapy for it.

 

Do I still cherish the stuff we did together? Absolutely. Will I ever do stuff with them again? No - I can't.

 

Do they deserve to have friends? Absolutely. But it can't be me. My mental well-being suffered as a result of being in the middle of that mess, and I can't go back there.

 

But again, it's up to the individual. I'm not critical of the friends who stayed loyal. Those I've spoken to also understand why I bailed.

 

I don't see this being any different. Creative people are still people. We may not be friends, but we see them as kindred spirits, and some people just can't be a kindred spirit with someone capable of behaving that way and being unapologetic about it.

[tristan]

You're right that nobody is perfect.  I have certainly fucked up before.  I don't wish ill on MG, and I hope that there are brighter days ahead for him.  He looks like he tries to be a good Dad to his kids and I truly respect that - he's not entirely a scoundrel by any means.  It is a shitty situation all around, and my empathy extends furthest to the victims.  Not to compare mine to theirs, but the past few days have been painful to me also.

 

I don't have a right to know about these things, though he has himself posted about them before and infact written songs about them for artistic and commercial purposes.  The fact remains that I do know these things now, and how MG himself views those things, and reading the pain felt by others, over a long period of time, makes it impossible for me to listen to him without it feeling weighty going forward.  I guess to me it is actually the opposite, where I wish him well as a person but can no longer relate and support the artistic and commercial endeavors I know occasionally lead to pain which he considers, essentially, a necessary evil.

[Scottt]

Cancel culture absolutely does exist. We've all witnessed the left actively and aggressively pursue people who had transgressions, both big and small. But regardless of Matt's, I don't see that happening here.

 

Prior to this, he complained outwardly about the lack of opportunities for touring. I think the reality here, is that people just don't find him or his music lasting, or even relevant.

 

He may issue an apology, feigned or otherwise. Agree to go to counselling to save what's left of his career. And from that point, things will likely go back to normal (or some state of normalcy), as they almost always do, with the majority of his remaining fanbase, unaware or unconcerned with what he did or said in the past.

Edited February 7, 2021 by Scottt

[uglyredhonda]

Updates via Reddit:

 

1) MG deleted pictures of his kids from his Instagram.

 

2) His YouTube page is gone.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxel7fCSGaxE-NAKHiFTZCQ

 

PS: probably good not to draw any conclusions.

[PlasticSoldier]

Not sure if the youtube is related or due to their weird merging of things they've been doing 

[uglyredhonda]

58 minutes ago, PlasticSoldier said:

Not sure if the youtube is related or due to their weird merging of things they've been doing 

 

Yeah, honestly, it could be something completely unrelated to this. I did notice that the more recent music videos are gone (eg: "All You Sons and Daughters", "Sicily"). The music uploads are still there (and still link to that page), just not the videos. *

 

 

* I'll note that I'm the States, and availability has sometimes been different here.

 

Edited February 8, 2021 by uglyredhonda

[Scottt]

Looks like Matt has been dropped from his label, he's no longer listed on the Warner Canada artists page.

 

https://www.warnermusic.ca/artists

Edited February 9, 2021 by Scottt

[jennzebel]

I have been following this closely and talking to people in the thick of it and I believe this is beyond typical musician dirtbaggery. It will all come out in due time I imagine. I have been grappling with how to separate the 'artist' from the 'art' and decided to just give it some time and see if I still feel the same way about the music once all is said and done. I know one thing for sure though....he won't be getting a dime of my money going forward based on just one allegation that I know for sure happened so....how I feel about the previous catalogue is up in the air - it is hard to imagine life without WWWHR in it....this whole week has been a disappointing stab in the musical heart. I am glad some people are getting to speak their truth regardless.

[uglyredhonda]

11 hours ago, Scottt said:

Looks like Matt has been dropped from his label, he's no longer listed on the Warner Canada artists page.

 

https://www.warnermusic.ca/artists

 

I noticed something similar earlier today, but was stalling until I could figure out for sure. I'm still not 100%, but it does look like that's the case.

 

Warner's Publicity site doesn't have him listed, either. However, his Artist page on that site still exists - it just isn't linked up. (I'm not linking that here because it has a Warner contact phone number on it, and I don't want whoever that is to get hammered.) The Google pre-cache for the Artist list page apparently had him a few days ago, but doesn't now:

 

 

I also noticed that the recent videos were branded as Warner videos in their thumbnails, which might explain why they were removed from YouTube - that whole page was likely under Warner's control. (It makes me think that MG's deal with Warners was a promotion/distribution deal where he controls the music and they control the videos.)

 

 

Still can't say with certainty (and I doubt Warner will say anything at this point), but it does look like he's been dropped.

 

EDIT: The reason I was hesitant to say with certainty - the videos seem to be set to Private rather than outright deleted. Since they didn't delete his Press page, it's possible that this might all be a pause by Warner.

 

Edited February 9, 2021 by uglyredhonda

[Gomo]

I've been a fan of MG for 20 years now. His music has been a huge part of the soundtrack of my life, much like most of you. I've attended numerous concerts and met him a few times after shows. I even flew from here in the US twice to see him play live.

 

I can't say I'm surprised about all this. Obviously it sucks the most for the people who have been directly personally affected. On a less important level, it also sucks for the loyal fans who have been "betrayed" as someone else in this thread put it. I agree with the idea that MG deserves an opportunity to share his side, but I don't know if he will. In my experience with PR crises, saying something right now, even if it's apologetic, will just open him up to more public criticism. The spotlight is very hot at the moment. In the interest of the continuation of his career, it might serve him better to lay low. Not condoning that, that's just how I see it. On the other hand, I remember MG said he was considering retiring around the time Moving Walls was released. I wonder if this will expedite that.

 

I can't speak to being a victim or to the experiences of the victims. I acknowledge those experiences, but my relationship here is as a longtime fan, so that's where I have to speak from. So how do I process my feelings and relationship with the music? I'm not really thinking about future music right now. I don't think he'll be releasing anything for quite a while, if ever again. It's funny, when I first saw this pop up on The Bored a few days ago, I was on the train heading to work listening to the Something Like A Storm album. I actually had been listening to MG's albums all last week after not having listened to them in a pretty long time. My first thought upon seeing this thread was "here it is" because as I said, I wasn't surprised. But my second thought was, "was this week of listening to his music me saying goodbye?"

 

My reaction last week when I saw this wasn't as stark as it was a couple of years ago, when Ryan Adams made headlines. A few years ago someone asked me who my Mount Rushmore of music would include. Matt Good and Ryan Adams were two of the four (Smashing Pumpkins and Yes were the other two). When Ryan Adams hit the news I was immediately deeply concerned and hurt. I basically took all his music and put it in a playlist at the bottom of my iTunes where I wouldn't see it too often, un-starred all my favorite tracks so they wouldn't pop up in top playlists or most played, and just kind of distanced myself from the music. I did that so I could take a break to process everything internally, and so I could see how I feel about the music down the road. I just needed that distance, but I wasn't ready to completely delete everything off of my iTunes. That said, I haven't returned to Ryan Adams' music since that news came out in 2019. Will I eventually? I still don't know yet.

 

I feel similarly about MG right. I'm probably going to distance myself from the music for a while. Probably going to stick the music down at the bottom of iTunes and have it be there, but just not engage with it. I want to see how I feel down the road. I know how I feel now, which is sad. I guess having already gone through the Ryan Adams situation, I'm kind of just throwing my hands up saying "am I really going to toss out half the records on my shelf? am I really going to disown all of these creative works with such huge personal importance to me?" Maybe I will, maybe I won't, but I just can't decide right now. Maybe I'll decide on that 5 years from now. There's plenty of other music to listen to, plenty of new music to discover, and plenty of new artists I can establish connections with.

 

I don't know, I'm just a music fan. I want to listen to music and not feel guilty about it. Right now I can't say that I wouldn't feel a little guilty. I'm gonna take a break from the music. I'll revisit it down the road and see how I feel. As for those who have been directly personally affected, I hope that sharing their experiences helps them in some way. And as for MG, I hope he tries to make things right, if there's a way to do that.

[jennzebel]

18 minutes ago, Gomo said:

I've been a fan of MG for 20 years now. His music has been a huge part of the soundtrack of my life, much like most of you. I've attended numerous concerts and met him a few times after shows. I even flew from here in the US twice to see him play live.

 

I feel you.... We are drifting in the same boat, I think a lot of fans here are as well. 

Sorry you got the double whammy with RA & MG.... That's rough.

I don't care if he makes more music, I'm choosing not to support him as an artist anymore. I have very limited power in this world and who I give my money to is my only play... so I'm utilizing it.

[Gomo]

15 minutes ago, jennzebel said:

I feel you.... We are drifting in the same boat, I think a lot of fans here are as well. 

Sorry you got the double whammy with RA & MG.... That's rough.

I don't care if he makes more music, I'm choosing not to support him as an artist anymore. I have very limited power in this world and who I give my money to is my only play... so I'm utilizing it.

 

Yep and that's your right and I don't fault you for it. As someone said earlier in the thread, it probably comes down to a personal choice / threshold moving forward.

 

As for RA & MG, yeah that is something huh? I love music. I've loved it my whole life. RA & MG have been so central to my music fandom. That's why right now I'm having a hard time just resolving to never listen to them again. I can't conclude that right now. That's why I'm just...taking a break. I'll see how I feel down the road. If others come to more immediate resolutions to ditch artists like this, I don't fault them. For me, I'm gonna wait and see.

Edited February 9, 2021 by Gomo

[Williammunny11]

1 hour ago, Gomo said:

I've been a fan of MG for 20 years now. His music has been a huge part of the soundtrack of my life, much like most of you. I've attended numerous concerts and met him a few times after shows. I even flew from here in the US twice to see him play live.

 

I can't say I'm surprised about all this. Obviously it sucks the most for the people who have been directly personally affected. On a less important level, it also sucks for the loyal fans who have been "betrayed" as someone else in this thread put it. I agree with the idea that MG deserves an opportunity to share his side, but I don't know if he will. In my experience with PR crises, saying something right now, even if it's apologetic, will just open him up to more public criticism. The spotlight is very hot at the moment. In the interest of the continuation of his career, it might serve him better to lay low. Not condoning that, that's just how I see it. On the other hand, I remember MG said he was considering retiring around the time Moving Walls was released. I wonder if this will expedite that.

 

I can't speak to being a victim or to the experiences of the victims. I acknowledge those experiences, but my relationship here is as a longtime fan, so that's where I have to speak from. So how do I process my feelings and relationship with the music? I'm not really thinking about future music right now. I don't think he'll be releasing anything for quite a while, if ever again. It's funny, when I first saw this pop up on The Bored a few days ago, I was on the train heading to work listening to the Something Like A Storm album. I actually had been listening to MG's albums all last week after not having listened to them in a pretty long time. My first thought upon seeing this thread was "here it is" because as I said, I wasn't surprised. But my second thought was, "was this week of listening to his music me saying goodbye?"

 

My reaction last week when I saw this wasn't as stark as it was a couple of years ago, when Ryan Adams made headlines. A few years ago someone asked me who my Mount Rushmore of music would include. Matt Good and Ryan Adams were two of the four (Smashing Pumpkins and Yes were the other two). When Ryan Adams hit the news I was immediately deeply concerned and hurt. I basically took all his music and put it in a playlist at the bottom of my iTunes where I wouldn't see it too often, un-starred all my favorite tracks so they wouldn't pop up in top playlists or most played, and just kind of distanced myself from the music. I did that so I could take a break to process everything internally, and so I could see how I feel about the music down the road. I just needed that distance, but I wasn't ready to completely delete everything off of my iTunes. That said, I haven't returned to Ryan Adams' music since that news came out in 2019. Will I eventually? I still don't know yet.

 

I feel similarly about MG right. I'm probably going to distance myself from the music for a while. Probably going to stick the music down at the bottom of iTunes and have it be there, but just not engage with it. I want to see how I feel down the road. I know how I feel now, which is sad. I guess having already gone through the Ryan Adams situation, I'm kind of just throwing my hands up saying "am I really going to toss out half the records on my shelf? am I really going to disown all of these creative works with such huge personal importance to me?" Maybe I will, maybe I won't, but I just can't decide right now. Maybe I'll decide on that 5 years from now. There's plenty of other music to listen to, plenty of new music to discover, and plenty of new artists I can establish connections with.

 

I don't know, I'm just a music fan. I want to listen to music and not feel guilty about it. Right now I can't say that I wouldn't feel a little guilty. I'm gonna take a break from the music. I'll revisit it down the road and see how I feel. As for those who have been directly personally affected, I hope that sharing their experiences helps them in some way. And as for MG, I hope he tries to make things right, if there's a way to do that.

 

Man, I couldn't have said any of this better myself. I was a HUGE Ryan Adams fan as well, and went through a similar series of thoughts as you after listening to a podcast with Mandy Moore where she dove into their issues a bit. 

 

All of what you wrote is well saiod, but that last paragraph really sums up everything I'm feeling.

[Gomo]

2 hours ago, Williammunny11 said:

 

Man, I couldn't have said any of this better myself. I was a HUGE Ryan Adams fan as well, and went through a similar series of thoughts as you after listening to a podcast with Mandy Moore where she dove into their issues a bit. 

 

All of what you wrote is well saiod, but that last paragraph really sums up everything I'm feeling.

 

Thanks for the kind words. I didn't delve into podcasts about Ryan Adams but I did seek out a message board to see what other people were saying. Most fans were grappling with similar feelings as me. Some didn't take any of it too personally and said they would keep listening. That message board eventually shut down because I guess the owners stopped caring enough to maintain it and they felt people needed to move on. Ryan Adams had announced he was going to release three albums in 2019, which I was really excited about. Then it all went to shit so quickly. I guess it had been going to shit for years and I just didn't know it.

Edited February 9, 2021 by Gomo

[Millstone]

22 hours ago, Scottt said:

Looks like Matt has been dropped from his label, he's no longer listed on the Warner Canada artists page.

 

https://www.warnermusic.ca/artists

Last Wayback Machine scan was on December 4th and he's there.

 

Artists | Warner Music Canada (archive.org)

 

YouTube channel is here and is currently removed:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxel7fCSGaxE-NAKHiFTZCQ

Edited February 10, 2021 by Millstone

[jennzebel]

2 hours ago, sharon said:

All this waiting around is killing me. Usually when something big happens, Matt is quick to respond. Not this time; this time is different. He is so quiet...

He has already killed a story Global was doing...there are other media outlets poking around with this. It will come out eventually - how big it catches is the question.

Edited February 11, 2021 by jennzebel

[gweeps]

While this is troubling, I can only hope it all gets appropriately sorted out. He's done a lot of fine things as well.

[Chris85]

The 2 most recent posts on Warner Music Canada’s Instagram page are riddled with comments asking for a response.

Edited February 11, 2021 by Chris85

[gweeps]

Frustrated accusers and fans who feel cheated? The court of public opinion rarely does anything justice. The context of abuse claims also matters. From what little I know, a good relationship therapist may have helped things, at least on her part. Anything more serious and get a hold of the police. Even if she's afraid of him, Instagram doesn't seem like a great bet to deal with her feelings. What's the endgame? Sometimes things really should remain private.

[uglyredhonda]

8 hours ago, gweeps said:

He's done a lot of fine things as well.

 

 

36 minutes ago, gweeps said:

From what little I know

 

You know, you could've just not posted. That's always an option.

[gweeps]

28 minutes ago, uglyredhonda said:

You know, you could've just not posted. That's always an option.

 

Yeah, but to not mention the positive points of his personality is wrong. This is not to say he isn't a hypocrite, but he isn't a robot either.

 

 

Edited February 11, 2021 by gweeps

[uglyredhonda]

7 minutes ago, gweeps said:

Yeah, but to not mention the positive points of his personality is wrong. This is not to say he isn't a hypocrite, but he isn't a robot either.

 

I used to know a guy who was all around great dude. Funny, charismatic. Helped you when you needed something. Openly promoted women's rights; he frequently wore a hoodie with a popular feminist slogan on it.

 

I once saw him pin his wife to the ground and remind her who was in charge of their relationship.

 

We aren't friends anymore.

[jennzebel]

8 minutes ago, gweeps said:

 

This whole site is about his accomplishments - its not really the time or conversation to be bringing up how awesome you think he is - we obviously all love his music or we wouldn't be here...& there could very well be some of his accusers here and it is really shitty to read people downplaying this. 

Having talked to a couple of the women involved and hearing their stories this is not just a disgruntled ex situation - Hayley's experience just brought out a few dozen women who feel like they were preyed upon by a much older man....there appears to be a pattern of behaviour that is gross...one of these women is just a year older than my daughter. You really think these women, his ex included have anything to gain by doing this, especially when so many people are shitting on them for it already and it hasn't even hit the media news outlets yet? I am extremely disappointed and let down but this is not about us fans. There are plenty of men who got #metoo'd who moved on without much consequence so this is not as unfair as you think it is.