UB40 bandmember Ali Campbell denied ever having a bar brawl with President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who is currently facing accusations of sexual assault. In an Op-Ed released by The Guardian on Tuesday, Campbell wrote he was "surprised" the Republican Court of Appeals judge was even a fan of the "socialist" band, let alone at one of their shows, leading to the tale of Kavanaugh's alleged fight with Campbell.
"We welcome Democrats and Republicans to our gigs—so long as they leave their politics at the door. There is no point preaching to the converted. And reggae is good-time music, so, if you are out drinking, it is the place to start," Campbell wrote. "But it is a big surprise to find out that Kavanaugh used to come to see us in his Yale days. You don't expect a rightwing Republican to follow a leftwing reggae socialist band from Birmingham. But we used to sing about really heavy stuff and wrap it up in frothy, happy tunes, so a lot of people got into us who had no idea what we were singing about. Maybe he just loves reggae… and didn't listen to our lyrics."
Campbell, the lead singer and songwriter of the Reggae group, didn't recall the show in Connecticut where he supposedly was hit in the head with a block of ice by Kavanaugh. "I would remember that, wouldn't I?" he questioned in the essay, adding that the band performed "more than 1,000 shows in the U.S. in the 80s" that all "blur into one another."
The British singer is certain the fight never actually took place though, mainly because it's simply not in his nature to hit the bar—especially one right across from the venue—after a show. "The last thing I would do is go to the bar over the road after a show—I jump straight into a car and go back to the hotel," he wrote.
He added: "If someone had been staring at me, I wouldn't have gone: 'Ere, who are you looking at?' I've been on TV screens for 35 years, so I'm used to people looking at me. Most people who do recognize me are lovely."
Campbell has no problems clearing Kavanaugh from the bar fight (though he'd be unable to say if a lookalike was there), but that doesn't mean the musician believes the next potential Supreme Court justice is clear of the other allegations the Senate Judiciary Committee is currently investigating. "I don't know the bloke, so I don't know whether he's innocent or guilty, but I wouldn't support anyone assaulting women," Campbell wrote.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Michigan native, Janice Williams is a graduate of Oakland University where she studied journalism and communication. Upon relocating to New ... Read more
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