Professional attention-seeker and onstage ranter Michelle Shocked has announced she will return to San Francisco to play a free concert on Sunday, June 30th — the closing night of S.F. Pride festivities. Adding to the already bizzarre and controversial setup, Shocked's concert will coincide with a press blitz/egotrip coordinated across the SF Examiner and SF Weekly.
While many, including ourselves, hoped Shocked's dubious relevance would fade once her tour was cancelled and the retweets died out, the alt-folk singer thrust herself back into limelight late last week. She took to Twitter on Friday to announce the free concert, the SF Weekly exclusive, a treasured spot in the 2013 Pride Guide spread and a forthcoming opinion piece in the Examiner. All of this was later confirmed by equally zany Twitterer Todd Vogt (president of S.F. Newspaper Company that owns SFBG, SF Weekly, B.A.R, SF Examiner... and, by week's end, possibly another local pub). To wit:
@OUeightONE2 @FreestateKansas You banged all four J! SF Weekly exclusive intv, Pride Guide spread, FREE SHOW in SF June 30, SF Examiner OpEd
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 14, 2013
U heard it here 2nd: Yup, it's true! We are "shocked" to be presenting Michelle Shocked live in a free concert in SF on June 30!
— Todd Vogt (@sfExaminerPrez) June 15, 2013
And yup- June 30 is the last day of SF Pride Celebration. Watch @SFWeekly @sfexaminer & @sfbg for full details on @MShocked free concert
— Todd Vogt (@sfExaminerPrez) June 15, 2013
While a free show during Pride (she's nowhere to be found on the official lineup) might look like penance for what was roundly perceived as an anti-gay rant onstage at Yoshi's back in March, it seems Shocked's message is more aligned with Code Pink than it is with the Dyke March. Starting last week and continuing on blast to anyone in @ reply range this morning, Shocked threatened to incite a flashmob and re-dubbed S.F. Pride as "SF is Proud of Bradley Manning":
@onemorelesbian Actually, June 30 is first day of "SF is Proud of Bradley Manning" See you at 10AM at Howard & Beale? http://t.co/tS0mMwYIYT
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 16, 2013
And then there was the matter of her op-ed in the Examiner. Rather than put pen to paper herself, Shocked has offered to let the Twitterati write it for her, thus directing eyes (and those @ replies) towards her for even longer:
OH I have a good idea The Twitterati will compose my SF Examiner June 23 OpEd piece 1000 word limit will be a breeze for us 140 characters!
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 14, 2013
Please send all submissions for "Write Michelle Shocked's June 23 SF Examiner Op Ed Piece" (1000 word limit) to #ShortSharpShocked4Manning
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 14, 2013
Vogt, perhaps sensing a backlash to a full-on media assault across his local media properties, took to Twitter Monday night to deny accusations that the stunt was just a cheap ploy to sell papers. The S.F. Newspaper Company's holdings are, after all, free papers:
@bilericoproject. Yes, it is shocking. I'm glad you find it so. It's all to sell more papers - oh, wait. Ours are all free...
— Todd Vogt (@sfExaminerPrez) June 18, 2013
Okay then - it's to make a ton of dough off the concert. Hold on, that's free too.....
— Todd Vogt (@sfExaminerPrez) June 18, 2013
Maybe we challenged Michelle Shocked to come to SF, answer for what was said/reported, face her fans & foes alike and perform for free?
— Todd Vogt (@sfExaminerPrez) June 18, 2013
While Vogt seems to be claiming that he is giving the squawky singer an opportunity to be held accountable for her actions earlier this year, any attempt to paint this as a noble effort to support journalism, or Gay Pride, or Bradley Manning or even ad sales in the Weekly feels disingenuous. Both Vogt and Shocked are notorious for playing dumb while watching things around them burn. As one observer on Twitter noted, Vogt's media ploy smacks of Citizen Kane — an opportunity to create controversial news, on which your own paper can report. Shocked, meanwhile, has never seemed quite sure how to represent herself, but seems happy to latch on to the controversy of the day.
Update: Although she reportedly granted an exclusive interview to SF Weekly, it sounds like Shocked has already figured out she could get played by the media. Now she's claiming that "ProJo" writer/SFWeekly music editor Ian Port's request to record their interview is an attempt to strong arm her. (Into what, exactly?)
@RollingIkeTina @iPORT The SF Weekly ProJo who is supposed to fly to LA today to interview me. Irony? He insists on recording the interview!
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 18, 2013
@iPORT I hate to take this to Twitter, but Ian is attempting to strong-arm me over a matter of principle and I have no reason to acquiesce
— Michelle Shocked (@MShocked) June 18, 2013
UPDATE: Vogt talks about why he wanted Shocked to come to SF during Pride.
Previously: All Michelle Shocked coverage on SFist.
All Todd Vogt/SF Newspaper Company coverage.