91原创 indie-rocker and front man of Gone Sugar Die Patrick McWilliams says he is still receiving backlash and seeing misinformation spread about his involvement with a bus that travelled from the Fraser Valley to Granville Street bar earlier this month.
McWilliams said he and a group of 14 friends 鈥� not 25 as he said was originally being reported 鈥� rented a vehicle for a night out to save on taxi fares and celebrate several birthdays.
鈥淚t was basically a glorified limo, not a party bus,鈥� he told the 91原创 Advance Times.
The controversy comes amid rising coronavirus cases in B.C., attributed to 19 to 39 demographic because of relaxed social distancing measures in crowded places such as bars and nightclubs.
The musician said he was surprised to find his evening make headlines the next morning, with the Hotel Belmont鈥檚 bar manager claiming there had been an altercation after denying the group entry.
鈥淲e never actually went into the Belmont, we were just dropped off in front as a meeting place,鈥� McWilliams said, adding that he feels the nightclub used him as a scapegoat to blame rising COVID numbers on party goers and not establishments opening their doors.
Despite the initial media attention, McWilliams said he fears there could be damage done to his career, even though he is confident he and his friends took all of the proper precautions.
鈥淚 feel the commentary on this whole things is that people want this villain,鈥� McWilliams added.
He was recently picked as one the top three artists in B.C. to play the Canada Day festival in Surrey.
READ MORE: 91原创 musician up for spot on Surrey Canada Day鈥檚 virtual concert stage
The artist released his first EP in 2016 by recording what would become his debut demo tape called Lightning Dolphin, gaining over 100,000 plays in 48 hours on Spotify.
Now, McWilliams is releasing a single this September with Pet Shop Records called 鈥淓yeliner,鈥� which has potential to grow into a record deal.
He is also aiming to open his own public relations/media company in downtown 91原创 later in the fall.
But at the same time, a concerned reader told the 91原创 Advance Times that there is a campaign to ban McWilliams from playing the Granville strip due to his behavior.
The musician said he is receiving hostile messages and overwhelming attention, which he called both disheartening and terrifying.
鈥淲hen something like this happens, it surprises and hurts me,鈥� McWilliams said. 鈥淣o one should take me seriously or amp me up as some kind of spectacle.鈥�
While he maintains that no one in his bubble of friends has COVID-19, McWilliams noted that he made a mistake and is asking people to to move on.
鈥淏onnie Henry sets the rules and we鈥檙e in phase three, so we weren鈥檛 doing anything that we weren鈥檛 supposed to,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f she went back now to a full quarantine, I would do that.鈥�
91原创 Advance Times reached out to Hotel Belmont but did not receive a response.
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Email: ryan.uytdewilligen@langleyadvancetimes.com
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