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Macklemore & Ryan Lewis win over teachers in school dispute

Written by . Published: October 14 2015

Rap stars Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have emerged victorious following a dispute over plans to perform at a school in California.


The hip-hop duo agreed to play a show at Aliso Niguel High School after students won a competition for a private concert and a $10,000 grant for the music department.


However, a number of parents complained about mentions of drug use and misogyny in the stars' lyrics, and officials at the school decided to turn down the prize.


The move sparked fury among some students, and a petition demanding school bosses reverse the decision garnered more than 8,700 signatures.


A hashtag, #bringbackmack, began circulating on Twitter.com and came to the attention of Macklemore, who shared a link to the story with the message, "That's disappointing."


It has now emerged school officials have changed their minds about the ban and are allowing the gig to go ahead.


"After careful consideration of varying viewpoints on all sides of the issue surrounding a possible visit by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, it is my hope that we have developed a plan that will meet the needs of our diverse students," says school principal Deni Christensen in a statement.


"We will be holding this event after school hours in December... The one thing my peers, our parents and I want to convey is that we deserve a fair say in these decisions... Even though six or however many parents who were initially against (the visit), there are maybe 300 parents who would've supported it."


Pupils will only be allowed to attend the show if they present a permission slip signed by a parent.


Macklemore showed his support for the decision by reposting a link to a story about the reinstated gig on his Twitter page.

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