🌊 The Tweet That Cost a Rockstar His Job

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How a Rockstar Lost His Job

Would you choose fame or freedom? Few people would ever have to make such a decision. Winston Marshall did.

Marshall had started playing the banjo as a kid after watching “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Around that time, he also befriended Marcus Mumford, a singer in his church worship group.

Years later, Mumford was studying in Edinburgh, Scotland, where Marshall was playing music. Marshall would invite Mumford to join him on stage, and eventually the pair and two other friends formed a band: Mumford & Sons.

From driving around Britain to perform at grungy pubs and music festivals, the group exploded to superstardom. Anchored by Mumford’s voice and Marshall’s guitar and banjo playing, Mumford & Sons became Britain’s biggest rock band in years. In 2009, their debut album became the second debut in history to sell 1M digital copies; their 2013 album won the Grammy for Album of the Year.

Playing for Barack Obama at the White House and headlining sold-out festivals, in 2012, the Guardian named them the “biggest band in the world.”

Nine years later, they were still a big deal, however the pandemic had slowed things down. In his newfound free time, Marshall took to tweeting about the books he read. In March 2021, he tweeted at Andy Ngo, the author of “Unmasked: Inside Antifa's Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy.”

Ngo – the son of Vietnamese “boat people” – is an independent journalist often labeled a right-wing provocateur. His book’s detailing of the 2020 riots earned him widespread criticism from progressives and the media.

Yet Marshall liked it: “Congratulations @MrAndyNgo. Finally had the time to read your important book. You’re a brave man,” he tweeted.

Soon after pressing “tweet,” Marshall started getting angry replies.

“It wasn't like a bomb,” Marshall told Roca. “It kind of grew and grew. And I thought, ‘Oh no, just leave it. It'll die over the course of a weekend.’”

Except it didn’t: “It just kept growing and going up all the trending lists,” Marshall recounted. “I was naive into how Twitter worked and, you know, you don't get to choose what hill you die on. And it's annoying when you die on what might be a molehill.”

The replies were labeling him “far-right” and a “fascist,” never mind that he had 13 family members killed in the Holocaust. And the hate wasn’t just coming for him: It was coming for his friends, family, and band.

“By the end of two days, [the tweet] was a segment on Tucker and The View. And I was like, ‘What the hell?’ But significantly, it was like in my personal life and in my business life. All the phone calls started happening.”

“That was a horrible time that I don't particularly like to relive,” Marshall said.

Hoping to take the pressure off his band and loved ones, he decided to apologize and educate himself on why what he said was wrong.

“I spent a few months really getting into it, looking into the topic….What were my blind spots? What have I made wrong?”

But as Marshall did his research, he concluded he did nothing wrong – and, perceiving himself as having caved to the mob, struggled to live with himself.

“This apologizing when I'd done nothing wrong: I was like, ‘What if I had kids?’ I'd be such an embarrassing dad….it was utterly humiliating for me.”

“I wasn't sleeping, I wasn't eating, I was like, ‘I've been part of the lie,’” he told Roca.

At the same time, Marshall knew that if he took back his apology, his career would be over. So what to do: Pursue dignity or celebrity?

On the new episode of We the 66, Marshall told us his story. He talks about what getting canceled feels like (15:35); whether the band “begged” him to stay (27:34); how censorship happens in the music industry (29:29); why Nancy Pelosi got angry at him (30:00); and the topic he considers off-limits for a public debate (42:52).

We found this conversation to be fascinating and powerful. You can listen to it on YouTube, Apple, and Spotify. 

If you believe in nonpartisan news and the importance of free speech, receive full access and support our mission by becoming a premium subscriber.

Sincerely,

Max F and Max T

RocaNews co-founders