Death is very much present in the world of dance music at the moment, and not solely due to Covid-19. Robin Rush, Angel Moraes and Claudio Coccoluto are amongst those to pass away in recent days, so it’s understandable that many have questions on their mind.

Harry Romero, no less, is one of those who asks a very pointed question.

This deserves a pointed answer, so I’m happy to offer my thoughts. I believe that the current generation of house music stalwarts has a duty to guide the next generation. As Mr Romero points out, the current generation will not be around forever. If new and upcoming talent is not nurtured, house music has no future. It’s as simple as that – names like Kenny Carpenter must realise that too.

It also involves speaking the truth and calling out wrong where we see it. Unfortunately, this is an area where Mr Romero has shortcomings in. Remember when Erick Morillo died last year? He committed suicide with a sexual assault charge hanging over his head. Since then, it has transpired that Morillo was an aggressive and prolific sexual predator.

Harry Romero used to work with Erick Morillo. The two were friends and business colleagues. Romero provided numerous tracks and remixes for Morillo’s Subliminal label and the two worked together frequently for many, many years.

Why does Harry Romero have nothing to say on this subject? I have scoured his social media from the past six months and can find no reference whatsoever to the allegations circulating around his friend. Why has he, as a stalwart of the scene, got nothing to say on the subject?

Is it because Morillo was a personal friend? Is it because he believes that Morillo was falsely accused and that speaking out will harm his standing with the likes of close friend Roger Sanchez, whose girlfriend was allegedly a victim of Morillo? Is there another reason for his silence?

The current generation, as I said, have a duty to encourage the next generation to come forward. They also have a duty to ensure the next generation can do things in a way even better than they did. Romero’s silence over this matter – and it is a far wider matter than his old friend, it’s about what sort of culture we want in the house music world – casts grave doubt on whether he is up to the task.