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Fox 8 reporter Autumn Ziemba, left, asks Boots Riley, center, about his band, The Coup -- which led to an answer Fox 8 wasn't fond of. The band was promoting its show at LKWD Music Fest, organized by Kelly Flamos, seated on the right.

(Still from YouTube)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- What is your band about? What about the songs? Those are usually among the first and the most obvious questions asked, in one form or another, when a musician is interviewed.

No problem.

Not in this case -- when Boots Riley of the political punk-funk-hip-hop group The Coup appeared on Fox 8 WJW on Saturday morning. The Oakland, California, outfit's singer came on to promote its Saturday appearance at the LKWD Music Fest. He was joined by Kelly Flamos, festival organizer and owner of Mahall's 20 Lanes, which hosted the event.

It opened typically.

"Well, Boots, tell us a little bit about your band and the lineup people are going to hear today?" asked Fox 8 reporter Autumn Ziemba.

RILEY: Well, we're a punk/funk/Communist revolution band.

ZIEMBA: OK.

RILEY: And we are from Oakland, California, and we make everyone dance while we're telling them about how we need to get rid of the system.

ZIEMBA: Mmm.

RILEY: How exploitation is the primary contradiction in capitalism. And that if we want to express our power, we're going to have to be more radical in our actions.

The brief interview concluded with a mention of the festival's wide-ranging roster of bands.

"I thought it went OK – Boots was asked a question and answered it honestly," says Flamos. "Then I got an email a little later from the station, and it was really upsetting."

She would not reveal who from Fox 8 emailed her, except to say that it wasn't Ziemba. Flamos posted the letter on her Facebook page Saturday, which in part read:

"FOX 8 was not the time or opportunity for Boots to go on his political rant. With his statements he not only hurt our station's credibility, but also the festival's. I was looking to do a fun interview and it turned into something entirely different. We will not be reaching out for any interviews in the future."

LKWD Music Fest organizer Kelly Flamos posted the angry letter she received from Fox 8 on her Facebook page.

Ziemba acknowledged the interview on her Facebook page Saturday, saying: "Let's just say you never know what live guests are going to say."

Requests to Fox 8 for comment were not returned.

"I sent out a press release on the event, and Fox 8 responded wanting to do an interview with a single musician," says Flamos. "Maybe they think that I was trying to push some political agenda, but my only intention was to get the word out on the LKWD Music Fest

"I didn't want to pick one local performer at the exclusion of the others, so I thought that Boots would be good," she adds. "He's toured the world, and he happened to be in town that morning."

Fox 8 did not post the video on its Web site. The Lakewood Citizen, which reported first on the story, posted it online.

"Boots is awesome and a very talented musician," says Flamos. "I just don't understand why people are so scared that they can't have a political dialogue -- it's McCarthyism in 2014."