On Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, I was not anxiously awaiting the start of the University of Massachusetts Thanksgiving break. Although I was pleased and relieved to have a little time off of school, the thing I was really excited for that night was a performance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” by Knocked Loose featuring Poppy.

Knocked Loose is a Grammy-nominated hardcore/punk band from Kentucky. They performed the song “Suffocate” from their third album and “You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To,” which features metal singer Poppy.

The performance of “Suffocate” on Kimmel’s show was groundbreaking. Although I didn’t see it live, I watched the performance on YouTube the day after. The various camera angles showed a sea of lively people, all dancing in a mosh pit, with the rain soaking the stage.

After watching the performance, I was disappointed, but not surprised when I opened social media to find that many people were displeased with it. Kimmel and his show received backlash from regular viewers of his show. One of the top comments on Facebook about the featured performance read:

“You know I was trying to enjoy the program. I was sitting on my couch with my son who is an ADOLESCENT waiting to see the musical guest because we like the nice music the show usually books. By the third or fourth ‘JUNT’ from the guitars my son was in tears. He doesn’t like scary things and quite frankly I think the Kimmel show and its staff should make a formal apology.”

Everything about this comment made my stomach turn. While I agree that the performance from Knocked Loose was stunning, I didn’t think it was bad. I am a huge fan of Knocked Loose, Poppy and other artists who make music similar to theirs. Reading comment after comment criticizing the performance felt like a blatant disrespect to the culture that surrounds the rock and metal music scene, a culture I have resonated with for the better half of my life.

This viewer’s plain and willful ignorance of the rock and metal community is apparent in this comment, along with all the other comments criticizing Kimmel for having Knocked Loose as the musical guest that night. While this first comment made steam practically come out of my ears, others attacked Knocked Loose as an artist, saying; “That wasn’t singing, anyone can yell lyrics and get paid.” Another stated, “You can’t understand more than 5 [percent] of the lyrics. Moshing doesn’t equal dancing.”

I understand and acknowledge that different people have different tastes in music, but we shouldn’t be putting each other’s music down like this. Mainstream talk show hosts like Kimmel don’t tend to feature more underground, heavier-sounding metal or punk bands or artists.

Following the controversy, Knocked Loose’s vocalist Bryan Garris responded via Instagram, saying, “For a long time now our goal has been to see how far we could squeeze this band into places where we don’t fit and I think this may be the biggest one. National television. It feels like the ceiling gets higher for EVERYONE, every single day. We celebrate this together. Thank you so much.”

For the last 10 or so years of my life, I’ve felt most alive going to rock and hardcore shows, like the ones Knocked Loose puts on. I had the privilege of seeing Knocked Loose live last year towards the end of October, in Boston. The show was better than I ever could have imagined, and seeing my favorite artists perform live feels like one of the most magical things.

I totally identify with being “goth” or otherwise alternative in my look, and more importantly, my music taste. I completely feel Garris’ aforementioned statement about “squeezing into places [you] don’t belong.” Since I realized I felt different from the majority of the kids in my classes growing up, I have mustered enough courage to squeeze myself into places I felt like I didn’t belong.

I think that every part of Knocked Loose’s performance belonged on the Kimmel stage that night. It was a great move by Kimmel to give Knocked Loose the publicity that they deserve, especially as this is out of the ordinary for many regular viewers of the show.

The band’s performance, although shocking to some, was not inappropriate to feature on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” All music genres deserve a chance in the spotlight, especially those that aren’t mainstream.

Liv Cushman can be reached at [email protected]