🔗 Share this article

Punk duo lead singer of Bob Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "anti-IDF chant" performance at Glastonbury and asserted he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

Disputed Exclamation and Political Responses

This outspoken punk duo ignited significant controversy when they initiated crowd calls of "death, death to the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June performance. The chant was condemned by Glastonbury and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."

Following the incident, the band was dropped by its representation United Talent Agency, and the American state department cancelled the artists' travel documents, compelling them to call off a scheduled North American tour.

Interview with Louis Theroux

During his first public discussion since the Glastonbury performance, Vylan, whose real name is Pascal Foster, conversed on a popular podcast. When questioned if he would repeat his actions, he replied:

"Absolutely. For instance what if I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, yes I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."

The artist noted that the backlash the duo encountered was "small compared to what individuals in Gaza are experiencing."

Regarding the Chant's Significance

"I don't want to exaggerate the significance of the slogan," he continued. "It isn't what I'm trying to do, but if I have the Palestinian people's support, these are the individuals that I'm advocating for, they're the individuals that I'm being vocal for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Oh, because I've upset some conservative official or some conservative media?"

Surprising Reaction and BBC Comments

The musician claimed he was surprised by the outcry triggered by the chant, and stated that staff of BBC staff at Glastonbury told him on the day that the set was "fantastic."

However, the broadcaster's ECU later determined that the BBC's broadcast of the show breached content standards in relation to harm and hurt.

Vylan told Theroux there was no indication of a dispute in the moment: "It wasn't like we came off stage, and everybody was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We leave stage. It's normal. Nobody suspected anything. Nobody. Even crew at the BBC were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"

Reply to Damon Albarn

Vylan also responded at the Blur singer, who labeled the chant "one of the most spectacular misfires I've seen in my life" and characterized him as "marching in tennis gear."

Albarn's reaction was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," Vylan remarked.

"I need to say that labeling it as a 'huge mistake' suggests that in some way the views of the duo or our stance on Palestine's freedom is not thought out," he stated.

"I take great issue with the phrase 'marching' being used because it's only used around Nazi Germany," he added. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is offensive. I think his response was disgusting."

Meaning Behind the Slogan

After questioned what he intended by the phrase "Death to the IDF," Vylan clarified the slogan itself was "insignificant."

"The key issue is the conditions that exist to allow that protest to even take place on that platform. And I mean, the circumstances that exist in the region. In which the Palestinian population are being killed at an alarming rate. What matters about the chant?" he said.

"Death to the IDF rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, would it? … We are there to entertain. We are there to sing songs. I am a songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Perfect chant."

Denial of Antisemitism Allegations

Vylan also denied assertions from the Community Security Trust, a monitoring and Jewish community safety organisation, that their performance contributed to a spike in antisemitic incidents recorded later.

"I don't think I have caused an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish community. If there were many individuals of individuals acting and going like 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a negative effect here," he said.

Comparison with Other Artists

As Vylan said he felt the duo had been targeted more heavily than others for speaking about the situation, the host brought up the Irish band Kneecap, who have likewise encountered backlash for their approach to pro-Palestine advocacy.

"That's a notable point," he responded, "because as with all things ethnicity comes to play a part in that we are an more convenient target, seriously, than others are because we are inherently the enemy."