Dennis RomeroSee also: Offensive “Asian Girlz” Video Sparks Talk of Protest.
The horrific and racist song “Asian Girlz” was meant as a joke, band member Joseph Anselmi says.
Perhaps trying to get the last drop of publicity out of the controversy, Anselmi turned to the publication that broke the story, LA Weekly, to complain that we broke the story, saying:
Thanks for the great article, good to know a publication I highly respect for artist reverence has turned it's back on us in our own city. I thought there might have been some open minds on this staff. We all have freedom of speech, looks like you chose the negative route.
Anselmi has come up with different defenses:
In an email he said that the track “came from a place of love and appreciation” for Asian American women. But he also claims that it was meant as a joke (an idea we alluded to in our original coverage):
It's too bad that you and so many others did not understand our humor.
These guys are the new Kramer, because the lyrics are hilarious:
Korean barbecue / Bitch I love you / I love your creamy yellow thighs / Ooh your slanted eyes?
Credit: Day Above Ground / YouTube
The band previously tried to explain the song with a statement that argued it's so hateful it's meant to show the ugliness of racism:
This song is us, Day Above Ground, making fun of ourselves (and many, many other guys) obsession with the always lovely, Asian Woman. It pushes this concept to an absurd level, but at the same time is endearing & submissive …
Um. Yeah.
Anselmi originally said he'd talk to the Weekly on the phone, but instead he emailed us. We tried to get him to understand that, no matter what the intentions, it's easy to see why some Asian Americans would be offended.
We asked him to imagine the reaction if the song were similar but about black girlz and extolled the virtues of African American skin tones and soul food. Nobody would be laughing, but Anselmi still doesn't seem to get it.
The band member tried one more tact:
Three of the band's members have mixed, Latino ancestry. And everyone knows Latinos (George Zimmerman included) can't be racist. (The band also stated that one member was of Indonesian descent).
Anyway, there's two good things about this saga: Day Above Ground last weekend pulled the video from YouTube after nearly 1.5 million views. And you'll probably never hear about this act again.
See also: “Asian Girlz” Band Loses L.A. Gig After Racist Song Goes Viral.
Send feedback and tips to the author. Follow Dennis Romero on Twitter at @dennisjromero. Follow LA Weekly News on Twitter at @laweeklynews.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.