ICP's Shaggy: This year's Gathering of Juggalos 'more wild'
Adam Graham / Detroit News Pop Music Writer
Insane Clown Posse's Shaggy 2 Dope acknowledges that this year's Gathering of the Juggalos was "a little more wild" than previous years.
"It was pretty intense," Shaggy -- real name Joe Utsler -- said Wednesday. "It seemed like less rules applied (this year)."
His comments follow reports of performers Tila Tequila and Method Man each sustaining injuries after being pelted with debris thrown by the crowd while performing at the festival, held over the weekend in Cave-in-Rock, Ill.
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There were also reports of a non-fatal stabbing at the festival, now in its 11th year.
The fest celebrates Juggalos, the slang term given to fans of Detroit rap duo Insane Clown Posse and the roster of the group's Farmington Hills-based record label, Psychopathic Records.
Shaggy said the difference in the attacks between the two performers is Tequila invited it upon herself while the Method Man incident was the result of one bad seed in the crowd.
Shaggy said reality TV star Tequila invited the attack on herself by disrespecting Juggalos on her Twitter account in the weeks leading up to the event. However, combing through Tequila's tweets for two weeks leading up to the Gathering, no anti-Juggalo comments were found.
When Tequila took the stage at the festival Friday night, "you could feel the restlessness in the crowd," said Shaggy, who witnessed Tequila's performance first-hand.
"It progressively got worse. I don't know what set her off, but she started talking more and more (expletive)," he said. "In my opinion, it was almost like she was antagonizing people. If I got hit in the head, I would just leave."
Shaggy called Tequila a "trooper" for withstanding the attacks and finishing her performance, but said she has no grounds for a lawsuit because she was warned about the danger she faced performing and was paid in advance.
Tequila -- whom Shaggy calls "an attention monger" -- has threatened to sue the festival to ensure it never happens again.
As for rapper Method Man, who suffered cuts to his face from the attack, Shaggy showed more compassion.
"I feel really, really, really bad about that," he said. "It just takes one knucklehead to (mess) something up. One idiot in the crowd. That's uncalled for and ridiculous."
It is too early to tell the state of the festival going forward, Shaggy said, adding he's seen no reports on Tequila's proposed lawsuit. Psychopathic Records issued a statement on Wednesday distancing itself from responsibility for the attacks on Tequila.
In the meantime, the Insane Clown Posse on Tuesday announced its annual Halloween concert at the Fillmore Detroit. Tickets, $30, go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday.