BADBADNOTGOOD co-founder Matthew Tavares addresses his 2019 departure from the band

The keyboardist has claimed that the "environment was so negative" in the band that "I needed to get out, I couldn’t take it anymore"

BADBADNOTGOOD co-founder Matthew Tavares has spoken out about his departure from the band in 2019.

Tavares, who played keyboard and guitar in the band, left BADBADNOTGOOD in October 2019 after he stopped touring with the group in 2017.

Tavares has now spoken out on the reasons behind his departure in 2019, sharing his side of the story in a lengthy Instagram post on Friday (December 10).

“I realise I’ve never really publicly talked about leaving BADBAD in anyway other than my post about it two years ago,” he began. “A post that I spent a lot of time mulling over to make sure it seemed balanced and inoffensive and gave an honest perspective into how hard of a decision it was for me to leave.

“Unfortunately Alex [Sowinski, drums] and BBNG’s management didn’t agree, and I was unfollowed from their Instagram shortly after. Of course not without them commenting an emoji heart on my post to make sure no-one caught on and it was all ‘good vibes’. This is a small microcosm of what it was like to be in BADBAD the 9 years I was in the band.”

Tavares said that he “knows [that] a lot of people are going to be rolling their eyes at this thinking this is driven by pettiness because I’m not in the band anymore”, but wanted to stress that “I left on my own volition, leaving the master rights to a band that has four million monthly listeners on Spotify, to a band whose touring income was at insane heights, with an identity that was consistently validated and praised by our peers and the general public”.

Tavares continued by claiming that the “environment was so negative” in the band “that all this didn’t matter, I needed to get out, I couldn’t take it anymore”. He added that BADBADNOTGOOD’s “lack of acknowledgement of me leaving has gotten to the point of insult,” noting how the band’s Bandcamp biography “doesn’t even mention my name”.

“When I was about to leave I was told by management to play along to this narrative so they don’t sacrifice their XL Record deal, and I did,” he continued, before referencing the release of BADBADNOTGOOD’s latest album, ‘Talk Memory’, in October.

“But the record is out now and I can tell that the story will not be set straight by them.”

BADBADNOTGOOD
BADBADNOTGOOD perform on day two of the Maho Rasop Festival 2019 on November 17, 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand. (Picture: Jack Taylor/Getty Images)

Tavares concluded by saying: “While of course I can feel resentment and jealousy about not being on some big label or having the exposure of the band anymore, I have my freedom and I have love and I am surrounded by people who I respect and who respect me. It’s an incredible feeling.

“Do not assume I’m writing this from some angry place. I feel really grounded and happy, but I need to live honestly. I am unfortunately still afraid of BBNG. They have so many resources, so much legal power, a huge Instagram following and are on one of the biggest labels in the world. That’s why it’s taken me so long to post it. But I can’t let my fear get in the way anymore.”

NME has contacted BADBADNOTGOOD’s representatives for comment on Tavares’ post.

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