Lawyer and 604 Records cofounder Jonathan Simkin has apologized for a wisecrack he made on Twitter on July 10.

At the time, he quipped that he had just signed a new band with two guys and two gals, three of whom were of colour and the fourth who was physically impaired. He declared that the band's name was "The Inclusive 4" and that their music was "just horrible", but he still figured they were still a shoo-in to appear on the Junos broadcast.

That caused a furious reaction, resulting in the following statement from Simkin:

"Last week I tweeted something about the Juno Awards that I wish to speak to. The tweet was a poor attempt made in bad taste to address a serious issue. I deeply regret my choice of words in trying to make that point.

"Upon reflection, I can see that the comments were horribly insensitive, and I understand why some people have been hurt by those words. To those people, I apologize. It was not my intent to cause hurt, or to cause people who feel disenfranchised to feel even more disenfranchised.

"So let me be clear, here and now. Inclusion is extremely important, and necessary. Inclusion needs to be a big part of any discussion when it comes to the music business, the media and the world around us. I feel confident that an examination of my decisions in hiring staff, in signing artists, and in how I conduct my affairs and personal life say much more about where my heart is on the issue of inclusion than a carelessly worded tweet sent from a hotel room after midnight.

"Going forward, I am committed to being much more careful in my words. I will have more to say about this in the coming weeks and months, but I felt it important to address this now."