The Atlanta Hawks have issued an apology for playing
the unedited version of DMX’s "Party Up" over the Philips Arena loudspeakers
during an event labeled "Family Night."
The song was played Saturday (April 10) during
a time-out in the second quarter against the Boston Celtics.
"We are extremely disappointed in the song selected during that time-out
and despite the fact that our regular sound person was not on hand Saturday
night," the Hawks told AllHipHop.com in a statement.
The Hawks acknowledged that the graphic language
was audible to fans and said the song selection was a serious lapse in judgment.
"It is never appropriate anytime something
like this occurs, and with the numerous families in attendance Saturday night,
this was a serious error in judgment."
The Hawks extended an apology to every fan in
attendance at Saturday’s game and vowed to hold the persons who played the song
responsible.
"We should be held to a higher standard,
and on this occasion, we dropped the ball. This was an unfortunate mistake that
will never happen again."
