Leila DeJoui July 17th, 2025 - 4:53 PM
Due to the current political climate in the United States, the French electronic band, Yelle, and the Canadian rocker, Matthew Good, have both cancelled their upcoming tour dates in the US, according to an article by Stereogum. Recently, a lot of bands that are not from the US have been cancelling their shows in the US since the Trump administration has made it difficult for these artists to get visas for their tours. Yelle has posted a statement on their Instagram concerning the cancellation of their shows. “There are multiple reasons why we came to this decision,” said the band. “The current political climate in the US, especially in regard to immigration and freedom of speech, is very worrying. We are now traveling as a family with our young child, so more than ever, we need to feel safe. In addition, the overall costs of this tour are becoming barely possible to balance and it is putting a great financial burden on us.”
Good has also posted a statement on his Facebook about the cancellation of his shows. “This is not fair to [US fans], and I’m very well aware of that, but the truth is, every week that goes by, I have a deeper disdain for what’s going on there politically,” said Good. “Recently, it was announced that after a year of an imposed digital services tax, we (Canada) are backing down from that, to appease Mr. Trump’s government. This was approximately 2 billion dollars in revenue that has been accumulating, and we’re walking away from that. Add to that, the massive increase in visa costs, the fear mongering that even after we have our visas, we may still be denied entry if we have something negative to say about the current GOP, and I end up in a situation where I’m biting my tongue, and losing what credibility I had to stand up and say something. Myself, and my band will lose a week’s worth of work, and that really hurts, but giving up 30% of our earnings to a withholding tax, walking on eggshells at the border, and actively participating in the silencing of opinions, is a bigger cost to me personally.”
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