Jessica from The Veronicas says ARIA snubbed their clip because of ego and LGBT politics

UPDATE: ARIA just sent us a response to Origliasso‘s tweets, and our subsequent story. It’s published verbatim at the bottom of the story.

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Jessica Origliasso from The Veronicas has taken a public shot at ARIA this morning for snubbing their video for ‘On Your Side’ in the Best Video category at this year’s awards, for reasons she puts down to egos and politics.

She has called out the hypocrisy of any possible ‘equality’ theme at this year’s awards while “snobbing the most watched LGBT video of the year, because egos+politics.”

It has to be noted that ARIA have been quiet regarding the same sex marriage debate, too, the only major body in the Australian music industry to remain silent on the issue.

An email we sent to ARIA some weeks ago asking whether the company would be making a statement about the issue was met with silence.

The company has added its logo, alongside 823 other corporations, to an open letter, but unlike other music industry bodies, they haven’t made a stand alone statement.

It’s also very interesting that the ARIA Chairman, Denis Handlin, also happens to be The Veronicas’ label boss.

View Jess’s tweets below.

RESPONSE FROM ARIA

An ARIA spokesperson said:

“The Best Video Award Nominees are not selected by ARIA but by the ARIA Voting Academy which is comprised of over 670 members of music industry of former ARIA winners and nominees, labels, managers, publishers, media, and retail.

ARIA has been a supporter of The Veronicas’ success, inviting the duo to perform on the ARIAs stage on a many occasions, in addition to hosting our 30th Annual ARIA Awards celebrations.

ARIA has always provided its support and national stage for artists to have their say on this issue. Last year, Stand Up Events CEO and Founder Angie Greene spoke from the ARIAs stage on behalf of Australian Marriage Equality as she collected Sia’s Best Female ARIA. The night also included statements in support of Marriage Equality by Kylie Minogue and Troye Sivan. ARIA continues to support equality and diversity in all its forms.

ARIA has most recently showcased its support for the cause by signing the Australian Marriage Equality Open Letter of Support along with over 700 other corporate entities: http://www.australianmarriageequality.org/open-letter-of-support/”

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.