Bob Vylan Position on Glastonbury Israel Defense Forces Protest: "No Regrets"
Punk duo frontman of Bob Vylan has stated he is "not regretful" about his "death, death to the IDF" act at Glastonbury and asserted he would "do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
Controversial Exclamation and Political Reactions
This vocal music duo sparked significant debate when they initiated crowd calls of "down with the IDF," pointing to the Israel Defense Forces, during their June set. The slogan was censured by festival organizers and Britain's leader the prime minister, who described it as "appalling hate speech."
After the incident, the band was released by its representation United Talent Agency, and the US state department revoked the artists' travel documents, forcing them to cancel a scheduled North American tour.
Interview with Louis Theroux
During his first public discussion after the festival show, the musician, whose real name is Pascal Foster, spoke on a popular podcast. After questioned if he would repeat his actions, he responded:
"Oh yeah. Like suppose I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
He noted that the criticism the duo encountered was "minimal compared to what individuals in Gaza are experiencing."
Regarding the Protest's Importance
"I don't want to overstate the significance of the chant," he continued. "That's not what I'm trying to do, but since I have the Palestinian people's backing, these are the people that I'm doing it for, they're the individuals that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Oh, because I've angered some rightwing politician or some rightwing news outlet?"
Surprising Response and Broadcaster Feedback
This musician claimed he was taken aback by the uproar sparked by the exclamation, and stated that staff of BBC employees at the event told him on the day that the performance was "excellent."
However, the broadcaster's ECU subsequently determined that the network's broadcast of the show breached editorial standards in regard to offense and offence.
He told Theroux there was no sign of a dispute in the moment: "It wasn't like we came off stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We come off stage. It's normal. No one thought anything. Nobody. Even staff at the BBC were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"
Reply to Blur Frontman
The musician also hit back at the Blur singer, who called the protest "a major misstep I've seen in my life" and described him as "goose-stepping in tennis gear."
His comment was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," Vylan remarked.
"I just want to say that categorising it as a 'huge mistake' implies that in some way the politics of the duo or our position on Palestine's freedom is not thought out," he stated.
"I strongly object with the phrase 'goose-stepping' being used because it's only used around the Nazis," he continued. "That's it. And for him to use that language, I think is offensive. I think his response was disgusting."
Intent Behind the Chant
When questioned what he meant by the chant "Death to the IDF," Vylan said the chant itself was "insignificant."
"What is important is the conditions that exist to permit that chant to even take place on that platform. And I mean, the circumstances that exist in Palestine. Where the Palestinian people are being slain at an disturbing rate. Who cares about the chant?" he said.
"Death to the IDF rhymes," he noted: "'End, End the IDF does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, right? … We are there to entertain. We are there to sing songs. I am a songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Perfect slogan."
Denial of Hate Speech Claims
The musician also denied assertions from the CST, a watchdog and Jewish safety group, that their set contributed to a rise in anti-Jewish incidents reported two days.
"I don't think I have caused an hostile atmosphere for the Jewish community. If there were many individuals of individuals acting and saying 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I could go, oh, I've had a bad impact here," he said.
Comparison with Other Artists
When Vylan said he thought the band had been criticised more severely than others for speaking about the conflict, Theroux referenced the Ireland-based band Kneecap, who have also faced criticism for their approach to pro-Palestinian advocacy.
"That's a notable point," he responded, "since as with everything race becomes a part in that we are an more convenient target, no pun intended, than others are because we are inherently the opponent."