The War & Treaty have spent the last year gracing award show stages, garnering Grammy nominations, and even earning their first-ever platinum single. But for artists of color in the country and Americana space, success and acclaim doesn’t mean escaping the litany of microaggressions and racist assumptions built into these spaces of the music industry.

Last weekend, before performing at the Coca-Cola Sips & Sounds Festival in Austin, the husband-and-wife duo encountered a startling sight in their dressing room: a cotton plant. The plant was simple green room decoration, but in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter,  the duo discussed the ways in which the plant represented a larger issue of predominantly white spaces in the industry failing to make artists of color feel welcome or safe.

“We went back and forth, wondering if we should speak out on this incident,” the band said on Instagram, after the story’s publication. “Ultimately, we knew this issue was bigger than just us.”

In a statement to Rolling Stone, festival organizers apologized for what they called “an honest mistake.”

“We are disheartened that the artists were ever uncomfortable at last weekend’s event,” the statement reads. “There was no purposeful harm intended, and we sincerely apologize. Their concern was met with immediate action, including a heartfelt in-person apology, removal of the decor and a personal conversation with the artists by event organizers.”

In the interview with THR, Michael and Tanya Trotter detailed the cycle of emotions they were forced to feel after encountering the cotton plant.

“Anger is what I felt,” said Michael, a veteran. “Disrespect is what I felt. Sadness is what I felt. Sadness not just because of what that plant represents to people that look like me but sadness for myself because I am a son of this country.”

For Tanya, the daughter of a sharecropper, the thoughtless room decoration served as a harmful reminder of her family’s past. “ It’s not my position to educate anybody on what cotton is and what it represents in this country,” she said. “It just shouldn’t happen.”

Left unsaid is that of the ten artists playing the main stage over the two-day music festival, the War & Treaty were the only non-white artists amidst a lineup of white acts performing blues, soul, and rap. A representative for the Coca-Cola Sips & Sounds Festival did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone‘s request for comment.

The decision to speak out weighed on the group, now signed to a major label, that has developed a reputation (once they’ve tried to shed) of being feel-good cultural bridgebuilders ever since their 2018 debut Healing Tide. “We’re not the kumbaya cats that people may want to paint on us,” Michael Trotter told Rolling Stone in 2020. “We intentionally wanted to focus on healing with Healing Tide, but we might’ve given off the wrong impression in saying that we are the healers…We are the most hopeful cats.”

More recently, the band released its latest single, “Called You By Your Name,” a bluesy rave they performed last month at CMA Fest. 

The New Orleans Saints will begin training camp in a few weeks to prepare for the upcoming 2024 season. Despite this, national outlets are already predicting the 2025 NFL Draft.

ESPN just released their early mock draft for next season, and the Saints are predicted to select Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers as the No. 10 overall pick. If so, New Orleans would miss the playoffs for a fourth straight season and have a sub—500 record.

Ewers heads into his Junior season with the Longhorns after an impressive sophomore campaign. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound San Antonio native is on a short list for Heisman trophy favorite in college football next year.

During his sophomore season at Texas, he led the Longhorns to a College Football Championship playoff berth after throwing for 3,479 yards and 22 touchdowns.

Ewers set the Big 12 Championship game record for most yards (452) and tied the mark for touchdown passes (4) en route to becoming the MVP.

ESPN’s Matt Miller gave his rationale for the Saints’ draft pick:

“The 2024 season will be crucial for the future of starting quarterback Derek Carr in New Orleans and perhaps provide a window into what the team has in rookie fifth-rounder Spencer Rattler. At this time, it doesn’t appear that either quarterback is the future here. Ewers has talent worthy of a first-overall pick heading into his third season as a starter at Texas. At 21 years old, he has to cut down on poor decisions during games, but his accuracy, mobility, and arm strength are that of a future NFL starter. Ewers threw for 3,479 yards and 22 touchdown passes last season.”

A top-10 draft pick would mean New Orleans would have a disappointing season. Starting Quarterback Derek Carr faced criticism early in the year for his slow start when he threw two touchdowns and two interceptions during the first four games of the year.

Carr turned things around by throwing 12 touchdowns in his last four games. He finished the season with 3,878 yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.  Carr signed a 4-year, $150 million contract to join the Saints in 2023.

The Saints finished with a 9-8 record in 2023-24, narrowly missing the playoffs. Since then, Dennis Allen has overhauled the offensive staff, firing long-time offensive coordinator Pete Carmicheal and hiring Klint Kubiak to replace him.

Remember that the club drafted former South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. He, Jake Haener, and Nathan Peterman will compete in training camp to become Derek Carr’s backup. Unless Carr has a dismal season, it’s doubtful New Orleans will move on the veteran signal-caller — especially should Allen remain as head coach.