Pharrell Williams' Something in the Water music festival won't be returning to his hometown of Virginia Beach.
The news comes after the death of his cousin, who was shot and killed by a local police officer this past spring.
"I've always loved the city of Virginia Beach and most importantly our people. [...] When we did the festival [in 2019], it was to ease racial tension, to unify the region, bring about economic development opportunities and broaden the horizons of the local business community," Pharrell began his letter.
"I wish the same energy I've felt from Virginia Beach leadership upon losing the festival would have been similarly channeled following the loss of my relative's life," he continued.
Pharrell went on to say that while he loves his city, it has been "run by and with toxic energy" for far too long.
"The toxic energy that changed the narrative several times around the homicide of my cousin, Donovan Lynch, a citizen of Virginia, is the same toxic energy that changed the narrative around the mass murder and senseless loss of life at Building Number 2," Pharrell wrote.
He later referenced his song "Happy," explaining that he "sang about a room without a roof," but he was "tired of kindly and politely being shown the door."
"Until the gatekeepers and the powers-that-be consider the citizens and the consumer base, and no longer view the idea of human rights for all as a controversial idea... I don’t have any problems with the city, but I realize the city hasn't valued my proposed solutions, either," Pharrell concluded.
