LL Cool J, Jazmine Sullivan Cancel Philadelphia Festival Gig in Solidarity With Striking City Workers
Both the rapper and the Philadelphia-born R&B singer were scheduled to perform at the Wawa Welcome America Festival on Friday, but hours before the performance, LL Cool J announced in a video statement on social media that he would forego the gig in support of the 10,000 city employees — ranging from 911 dispatchers to trash collectors to water department workers, the Associated Press reports — who walked off the job Tuesday in an effort to secure better pay and benefits.
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'I understand there's a lot going on in Philadelphia right now, and I never, ever, ever wanna disappoint my fans, especially in Philadelphia…but there's absolutely no way that I can perform, cross a picket line and pick up money when I know that people are out there fighting for a living wage. I'm not doing that,' LL Cool J said.
'I've been coming to Philly my whole life. I have respect for the city. And I hope, I hope, I hope that, you know, the mayor and the city can make a deal. I hope it works out.'
Sullivan wrote on her Instagram Stories, 'In this life we are only measured by how we uphold our morals and standards, by what we choose to fight for through participation or protest. Today I choose not to perform at the Wawa Welcome America concert and stand with Philly's DC33 until the city and union find a way to bring fair living wages to our working class. I love my city and I believe in you. Hopefully we will get to celebrate when things are better.'
LL Cool J added that he would still travel to Philadelphia with the hope that an agreement between the workers and the city could be reached, but no deal materialized by Friday. 'I'm not gonna cross a picket line and perform for money when people are hurting,' he reiterated.
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