Blue Jays walk up song inspires feminist rant from Toronto dad
Posted April 21, 2015 1:57 pm.
Last Updated April 22, 2015 7:49 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Blue Jays have apologized to a Toronto man after he ranted on Twitter about a misogynistic song played at Sunday’s game.
“Open Wide” by Calvin Harris ft. Big Sean played in the Rogers Centre as pitcher Roberto Osuna took to the mound in the seventh inning.
The song features lyrics such as: “open that s— wide, let me see how big your mouth is” and “Turn flat chests into mountains. And ooh I love that a–. But I hate that f—– outfit.”
The swearing was censored, but not the sentiment.
Luke LaRocque took to Twitter to register his disgust in a rant he dubbed, “How Being a Dad to a Daughter Makes Me a Feminist”.
“I don’t consider myself a prude, and I know that others have different musical tastes than me. But really? On a Sunday afternoon?” LaRocque tweeted.
The Jays have an internal procedure for making sure the music played at Rogers Centre is appropriate that was not followed in this “rare isolated incident,” spokesperson Jay Stenhouse said in an email to CityNews.
“While there were no swear words played, they were not appropriate for the great family entertainment we provide and we are sorry for that,” Stenhouse said.
LaRocque said the song choice made him reconsider bringing up his 18-month-old daughter as a Jays fan until the organization rethought their policy around song selection.
“I don’t want my daughter to grow up in a world where those are the lyrics she has to listen to when she wants to watch a sport,” LaRocque tweeted.
The Rogers Centre sound team and announcing team personally called LaRocque to apologize.
He said he was told Osuna sent the music to the sound team only 30 minutes before it played and it hadn’t been properly vetted.
LaRocque declined to comment further on the story saying he was satisfied with the team’s response.
With files from Andrea Piunno
