Stand Up / Fight Back 2023 poster
Stand Up / Fight Back is a concert series modeled to involve different spheres of the Milwaukee music scene in benefiting social justice causes. Started and organized by Kevin Pappas, the shows allow creative expression and political activism to be unapologetically facilitated in the same space. The first Stand Up / Fight Back show took place in January at X-Ray Arcade and supported Reproductive Justice Action Milwaukee (RJAM).
Pappas has over seven years of experience booking shows under the name Black Riff Productions. While not originally overtly political, his shows gradually began incorporating activism over time. “It was always just kind of for fun at first,” Pappas traces back. “But about four years ago when Trump was talking about getting Roe v. Wade overturned, my wife and I threw a benefit fest for Planned Parenthood at Walker’s Point Music Hall and that ended up being one of the most successful shows I’d ever done.”
The couple helped start RJAM when Roe v. Wade got overturned last year, and they got to know the folks in the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (MAARPR) through that circle. “They took us under their wing and gave us guidance,” Pappas continues about MAARPR. “I’ve learned so much from them … the people who run that organization I’m just so impressed by. They really know what they’re talking about.”
Rallying the Community
The debut Stand Up / Fight Back show rallied massive community support and featured Milwaukee metal, punk and hardcore acts It Is Dead, Snag, Murder Generation, Mind Harvester, Hex Tripper and Algid Funeral plus Iowa's Closet Witch.
Pappas embraces that now more than ever, creative spaces should be utilized as platforms for advocacy and awareness around important issues, saying, “Basic decency and human rights should mean a lot to all of us.”
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The second Stand Up / Fight Back show is on August 12 at X-Ray Arcade and will benefit MAARPR. The series is welcoming Mind Harvester back while featuring Maul (Fargo), Wanderer (Minneapolis), Funerary Outlook (Green Bay), Sarin (Chicago/Northwest Indiana), Selenoplexia (Chicago) and Milorganaut (Milwaukee) as well. Sponsoring the event are local businesses Music Go Round Greenfield, Omen Alternative Music and Media, and Omen Subculture Clothing and Accessories. Tickets are available here: www.etix.com/ticket/p/2897254/stand-up-fight-back-2a-benefit-for-the-milwaukee-alliance-against-racist-and-political-repression-cudahy-xray-arcade.
Although Stand Up / Fight Back has mostly involved metal and punk bands thus far, Pappas plans to include more types of music in future editions. “I’m hoping that the next one will be two nights,” he mentions. “If any skramz or emo bands want to play it then they should hit me up.”
Additionally, Pappas wants to spotlight different venues in town and continue supporting various organizations doing impactful work. “I’m not doing this just for fun anymore,” he concludes. “We’re really focusing on these benefit shows. Solidarity is more than just saying you’re an ally—you have to take action.”
