While I was never a huge fan of the Dropkick Murphys, there was some of the music which I liked. In particular, I always enjoyed "Shipping Up To Boston," which may or may not have been the band's biggest or most iconic song. It is certainly one of their best known and most used works, as it has been used in at least one major movie (fittingly set in Boston) and at least one beer commercial (probably Sam Adams, although I am blanking on the specifics).
That said, again, I admittedly never became a huge fan or anything, despite having seen them at least once, and possibly even twice.
However, I have a newfound respect for them in recent weeks. I heard the lead singer, Ken Casy, absolutely blast President Trump and MAGA not long ago. And their very strong stance against Trump and the MAGA cult is now making some headlines. Given the reluctance by many to criticize Trump - and we just recently watched CBS cancel "The Late Night Show With Stephen Colbert" with Trump applauding the move - which seems to speak volumes of the present-day climate of fear and intimidation and obvious retribution that can happen when someone dares to criticize Dear Leader. So personally, I give the band credit. They just issued a statement making it clear that they will never again take part in Punk in the Park after discovering that the festival organizer had donated (and obviously supported) the Trump campaign in 2024.
The band did still honor their commitment and played its scheduled set at Punk in the Park Denver on Sunday night (July 19th), but did so only for loyal fans who had already bought tickets. Then while on the stage during the performance, frontman Ken Casey took some well-placed shots at festival organizer Brew Ha Ha Productions’ owner Cameron Collins for having donated to Trump’s presidential campaign last year.
Here, specifically, is what he was quoted as saying (see link to article by Jon Hadusek of Consequence.net below):
“If you’re coming under the punk-rock banner and you voted for that f–king guy, and you support that f–king s–t that they’re doing, you’ve twisted your mind into knots,” said Casey onstage (via Billboard). “The far right ain’t the new punk — you heard it here first.”
Then they announced that they would never take part in it again, however, making very clear why. This was that announcement, specifically according to an article by Jon Hadusek of Consequence.net:
“Hey folks. Punk Rock and Donald Trump just don’t belong together. So Upon finding out that Brew Ha Ha promotions donated to the Trump campaign we will not be playing any more Punk in the Park shows. We kept our commitment to the Denver show because we didn’t want to leave our supporters who bought tickets holding the bag. Thanks for your understanding on this matter.”
Personally, I applaud this move by the Dropkick Murphys. Indeed, Trump and punk really do not mix, regardless of what former punk icon turned Trump supporter John Lydon might suggest (yes, sadly, he has become a vocal Trump supporter). Trump demands absolute loyalty and questions the legality of criticizing the president, at least when he himself is president, although he certainly exercised his Constitutional right to criticize presidents when he was not in the Oval Office, particularly during the Obama and Biden administrations.
Punk is supposed to be about challenging authority, not about putting your tail between your legs and falling into line. So good for the Dropkick Murphys to remind everyone of that, in my view. We need a lot more punk bands (and musicians across genres, for that matter) to speak out loudly against what is happening in the United States under the Trump presidency right now).
Cameron Collins, the owner of Brew Ha Ha Productions and festival organizer, of course has a right to try and defend himself. So he issued a statement, where he tried to make clear that he never tried to silence any acts from expressing their political views on stage. Here, according to that same article (again, see below), is how he responded in the statement:
“I have never posted anything political on our platforms and have no intention to in the future but this needs to be addressed. There have been a lot of assumptions and conclusions made as to who I am and what my values are.
"Like many Americans, my political views don’t neatly fit into a single box or party affiliation. I believe in fairness, humanity, free expression, and fostering unity among people. That’s how I’ve tried to live my life and conduct my business."
Now personally, I call bullshit.
After all, if you support something like the Trump campaign, and presumably now his presidency, and especially if you fund it, then your belief in "fairness, humanity, free expression, and fostering unity among people" seems disingenuous, at best, frankly.
Fairness? Humanity? Free expression? Fostering unity among people?
Are these the kinds of values that come to mind when you think of Trump and his presidency, or the MAGA cult more generally?
Please, just give me a break. Also, give me an ounce of credit and stop trying to sell me the notion that Trump embodies or champions any of those things. Your support of the man cannot be justified, and your feeble and self-serving attempts to justify it show that just like the man you admire, and who you helped impose on the rest of us in the Oval Office, you are a liar and attempt to deceive people and claim things that are transparently not true. You paint a glowing picture of who you are and what you represent, but your support of a fascism speaks of another truth, which you conveniently left out.
Trump himself represents none of those things, and that has hardly been a secret. After all, Trump loudly and proudly put up that banner promoting his values over one decade ago now. And there has been ample opportunity for people like Collins to understand the true nature of who Trump is and what his presidency represents, which is authoritarianism, division, stunning levels of cruelty, silencing dissent, and elitist values.
Shame on Collins for supporting the Trump campaign. I applaud the Dropkick Murphys for making this move, which likely will cost them some money. We need to keep pressure on organizations like the one headed by Collins when they support imposing something as horrific as the Trump presidency on the rest of us. And there's no better way to do it than by hitting them in the wallet by depriving them of huge acts like the Dropkick Murphys, and having a band be vocal in their criticisms and exposing Collins, with his crocodile tears, for the disingenuous supporter of fascism which he appears to be.
Dropkick Murphys Vow to Never Play Punk Fest Again After Learning of Promoter’s Trump Donation by Jon Hadusek July 24, 2025:
"Upon finding out that Brew Ha Ha promotions donated to the Trump campaign we will not be playing any more Punk in the Park shows"
https://consequence.net/2025/07/dropkick-murphys-punk-in-the-park-fest-statement/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLv1pxleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHoP4CG_HKj73WKUmS1mSaBSgiSD6affDwias_nOnJQ9Brmv8loFohqlwm8wl_aem_snZbgazd9mctdXsn2dfEig
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