Olympia Music Fest Defrauded By Counterfeit Jonathan Richman

Coordinators of an Olympia, Washington celebration accepted they booked Jonathan Richman for an August 28th show, a gig that would have denoted his first pandemic-period execution. Be that as it may, a day prior to show, coordinators learned they rather had been misled by an individual claiming to be the Modern Lovers vocalist, who was really unconscious of the planned presentation.

As indicated by the Olympian, the trick wasn’t uncovered until Friday, when Evergreen State College’s KAOS DJ Mark “Markly” Morrison contacted Richman’s marketing expert to mastermind a meeting before the show. Both the artist and his marketing expert were “confused,” as they hadn’t booked an exhibition at the LoveOly Summer Fest. It was then that coordinators acknowledged they were the casualties of an “elaborate booking scam.”

The Olympia Film Society — which books the LoveOly Summer Fest — alarmed participants of the trick on Friday, recognizing that they had “received a call from someone pretending to be Richman expressing his interest” in performing at the fest; Richman “has performed in Olympia many times over the past 20 years,” coordinators added.

“We are shocked that this happened. We’ve been booking bands for the past 30 years, and this is a first for us,” Audrey Henley, executive director of the Olympia Film Society, said in a statement. “We hope this does not in any way hurt our relationship with the real Jonathan Richman and that he will return to Olympia soon.”

Richman, the genuine one, said in an assertion through coordinators, “Hello everyone! This is the real Jonathan Richman! I just heard of your wonderful festival and sounds like an ideal place for me to play someday. No hard feelings on my part and no apologies necessary from the wonderful people at [Olympia Film Society] who have invited me and Tommy [Larkins] up to play so many times.”

Richman likewise joked, “Did the guy who called you up manage to imitate my voice pretty good? Cuz if he did, you’ve got to hand it to him, most people can’t do it! But seriously now for just a second, I am sad for any disappointments and expenses caused to the Film Society and the fine people of Olympia. Of course I will come back to play for the Olympians!”

Coordinators added that the Olympia Police Department is examining the episode.