Officially, Colin Johnson has been "let go" from Chop Suey. Officially, the split is "mutual." And, officially, Johnson can only express "neutral" sentiments about the severance. Unofficially, everybody knows what it means to be "let go," no matter what Johnson is or isn't at liberty to disclose at the moment. Just like everybody knows how Johnson has been totally dedicated to bringing quality music and events to Chop Suey and to Seattle—events such as the recent U.S. debuts of Various and Fujiya & Miyagi; the debut Seattle public appearances from Girl Talk, Clipse, and Soulwax; the much-beloved electronic Broken Disco and recent editions of 18-plus indie dance night Club Pop; and countless other great local and touring shows.
Kris Kierulff of Aero Booking, who's recently been acting as Chop Suey's local booker, will take over Johnson's role.
"There are some changes going on at Chop Suey," says Kierulff. "Colin has been let go due to internal restructuring. It was a decision made by the owner [John Villesvik], primarily for financial reasons."
Officially, the decision has nothing to do with the statements Johnson recently made against Poster Giant on Line Out. But the coincidence is striking. On June 1, Johnson spoke out against the company's alleged use of threats, scare tactics, and targeted destruction of its competitor's posters, concluding, "There's an ongoing war—it's Poster Giant versus everybody else." He pledged to not use the company at Chop Suey.
That same day, Poster Giant president Doug Cox responded: "I wouldn't say that we've severed ties [with Chop Suey]. I don't know if they're going to be using our services in the future or not. That's up to Chop Suey. We'll wait and see what happens."
On June 4, Johnson was officially "let go" from Chop Suey.
"I'm very surprised," says Johnson of his split with the club. "The timing is very interesting."
"Tension has basically been building up," says Kierulff. "I know it looks strange with the recent controversy with Poster Giant, but they really don't have anything to do with each other."
Rather, Kierulff calls it a "decision made by the owner to keep the club relevant to the community."
"I've heard so many encouraging words from people outside of Chop Suey," says Johnson. "I'm really proud of my time there, and I feel really good about all that was accomplished while I was there. I feel like there was a lot of success on pretty much every level."
Was Chop Suey profitable under Johnson's booking? Who knows? I went to plenty of sold-out shows there in the past year, but then, I haven't looked at their books. Was he ousted for speaking up against Poster Giant? Not officially. But was Chop Suey "relevant" with Johnson at the helm? Yes, perhaps more than ever. 
Colin Johnson is scheduled to DJ at Chop Suey on Fri June 8 for Broken Disco with Nortec Collective and Smash TV—it's not officially his going-away party.
