I can see your point about being afraid to replace someone when they are doing a disservice to paying customers, but placing the emphasis on the Audience in that way is not exactly the opposite of cowardice. Most performers pander to and attempt to please their audience, so that's not special. The brave ones are the musicians that don't give a rat's about them. Bach said "Every note for God", not "Every note for Audience". Beethoven said to his patron, "You are but a prince. I am Beethoven [, mutha...]" Charles Ives didn't bother with conventional outlets after a while. He used money from his insurance business to produce his own shows and premiered works that increasingly impressed music critics and other composers while alienating audiences. When they walked out during his discordant pieces, he would jeer stuff like "What's the matter, can't take it, ya sissies?!"
I often think that we've gotten too far away from the priorities that makes music awesome, which is one of the many reasons why what we do is becoming a disposable commodity. I most admire the individuals like Frank Zappa that figured out how to be entertaining to an audience while simultaneously educating them and refraining from too much compromise.