BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART Bassist To MUSTAINE: I May Be Stupid, But I'm No Racist

Bassist Tyler Hoare of BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART has apologized to Dave Mustaine's guitar tech Willie Gee for allegedly making "racist comments" to Gee when BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART and MEGADETH shared the stage at the Loud Park festival in Japan last weekend.

In an October 21, 2009 post on the MEGADETH forum, Mustaine wrote that BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART's "blonde band member came close to getting his ass handed to him for racist comments to and about my tech, Willie Gee." He added, "I am glad I didn't hear [what he said] or I would have another story about bodily harm." (Referring to a recent online post in which he threated to put a journalist in the hospital for airing a TV report that Mustaine viewed as unfavorable.)

The members of BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART "unanimously and sincerely regret this misunderstanding, and all agree that Willie was nothing but 'awesome' to the band when they got to talk with him during Friday night's soundcheck," according to a press release. "They also all unanimously agree that Tyler's sense of humor can sometimes, inadvertently, be a little bit 'out of line' (as Willie characterized Tyler's comments in an e-mail to guitarist Casey Jones, who reached out to Willie after Mustaine's comments hit the Internet) and offer their heartfelt apologies to the guitar tech and the MEGADETH crew."

"Sometimes Tyler's mouth can get him in trouble," said BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART lead singer Tony Gambino. "He's got a weird sense of humor, and sometimes just shows plain bad judgment. But Willie, and the guys in MEGADETH and their crew, were nothing but awesome to us around Loud Park and we hope they can understand that sometimes you just say things that get taken the wrong way — I think everyone has had that happen to them at some time in their life — and accept our apology."

What follows is a letter from Tyler (pictured below),who wanted a chance to tell his side:

"Hey everyone, my name is Tyler Hoare — I'm the 'blonde guy' from BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART.

"This whole incident has really taken a toll on me, because I honestly do not have one racist bone in my body. I know people always say that, but those who know me know that's the God's honest truth.

"I promise you that if you talk to anyone who knows me personally, the accusation of 'racist' would be the last thing that anyone would think of. Stupid, maybe, 'weird sense of humor,' maybe, but definitely not racist...

"To share with you a bit of where I'm coming from: I have a mentally handicapped foster brother who is black that I love with all my heart. My ex-girlfriend of three years is black. I am a tattoo artist, and my clients are of all races.

"To Willie: I am very sorry I made you feel uncomfortable, it was not my intention AT ALL. If you knew me, you would know that I joke around alot and say stupid things, but a racist I am not. I guess I overstepped my boundaries because I didn't know you that well, but it's only because I felt really comfortable hanging with you.

"For those of you who've read enough, please know that I apologize to Willie, who was nothing but super-cool to me, and anyone else in the crew that may have been offended.

"I hope this will serve to clear things up.

"For those of you who want to know how one thing led to another, the details are below.

[Tyler recalls how he stuck his foot in his mouth. Again.]

"When we got to the venue and started setting up, MEGADETH was doing a soundcheck on the same stage where we would play. I noticed that their guitar tech was black and actually thought to myself that that was sweet, because we don't see many black guys in the metal scene. I went over, shook Willie's hand and chatted a bit. Later, we started talking and I brought up that 'South Park' episode where Cartman is trying to form a band. Willie was familiar with it, and we laughed together about it, and I was like, 'You should be a bass tech.' I was making fun of the stereotype, which was also done in 'South Park'. In no way do I think black people cant play guitar — that's just crazy, obviously!

"We continued to chat and hang for another 5-10 minutes, and I was not getting a vibe that I had offended, or I would have straight out told him 'Sorry, dude.' I was just making a joke, making fun of people that have these stereotypes.

"I'm sorry that this got misconstrued or overheard by folks who did not understand the context of our conversation, or the fact that I am sometimes, indeed, a little 'stupid.'"