Long-time readers of Ears To The House might remember that two years ago, we had quite a few questions to ask about MDL Beast Soundstorm. Indeed, we revisited the subject only yesterday, pointing out that at least one male DJ who is privately gay has accepted the offer to play in the notoriously homophobic Saudi Arabia.
We also briefly commented on how neither Jeff Mills nor Carl Cox were on the bill this year – both men appeared on the lineup back in 2021, with Cox doing another stint last year. So we thought we’d do a little digging to find out why – surely it wasn’t our criticism that changed their minds?
Well, in the case of Jeffery Eugene Mills, it sort of did. According to a well-placed source in Detroit who has spoken to Mills about this, he says “Jeff only agreed to MDL Beast because he needed the money. It was as simple as that. He has quite an expensive lifestyle, and the pandemic cost him a lot.”
“He hated the criticism that he received for doing the gig. He actually got offered another set in 2022, but turned it down. Jeff just didn’t want the grief that he got the first time all over again. Some of it came from his peers, which really annoyed him.”
And as for Carl Cox? Well, his appearance in 2022 suggests the criticism obviously didn’t bother him – but another source claimed that “He was just too busy with other commitments to do it this time. Coxy doesn’t like turning down shows and accepts as much as he can, but you’ve sometimes just got to say no.”
MDL Beast Soundstorm begins in Riyadh next Thursday and runs until Saturday…
