Are you ready for some football? A local radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin seems more than ready for the Green Bay Packers’ NFL NFC Championship game against the Seattle Seahawks. As a way to support the Packers, the radio station will not play any music from Seattle bands this week. The radio station’s music ban is called the “Say No to Seattle” campaign. Therefore, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Heart, Jimi Hendrix, and Alice in Chains will not get airplay until after the championship game. Tom Langmyer, general manager of Milwaukee’s radio operations, spoke about the station’s campaign, “All of Wisconsin is focused on the Packers beating the Seahawks on Sunday. Our ‘Say No to Seattle campaign’ is Wisconsin’s way to get behind the Packers and cheer them on to the Championship.”
This is not the first time a radio station has banned an artist’s music. Last year, a San Francisco radio station decided not to play Lorde‘s hit single “Royals” until the end of the 2014 World Series matchup between the Kansas City Royals and the San Francisco Giants. Pop star Justin Bieber also had his music banned by a radio station. An Ottawa radio station banned Bieber’s music in 2014 after the singer was arrested in South Florida for suspicion of driving under the influence, drag racing, and driving with an expired license. The radio station wanted to send a message to Bieber “get help.” The New Hot 89.9 FM’s controversial campaign was referred to as “#HotBansBieber.”
A Houston, Texas country radio station banned the Dixie Chicks’ music from their airwaves in 2003. The ban came after the lead singer of the Dixie Chicks, Natalie Maines, said she was “ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas.” The radio station stood by their ban after a poll on their website stated seventy-seven percent of their listeners favored the radio station’s decision. When the Houston radio station banned the Dixie Chicks, their album, Home, was the Number 1 Country Album on the Billboard charts. Their single “Travelin’ Soldier” was also the Number 1 single on the Billboard Country Chart. Despite the political controversy, Home was certified six times platinum.