Bobby Vylan's Stance on Festival Israel Defense Forces Chant: "Zero Remorse"
Punk duo frontman of Bob Vylan has expressed he is "without regret" about his "death, death to the IDF" act at Glastonbury and asserted he would "repeat it tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
Disputed Exclamation and Political Responses
The vocal music duo ignited significant controversy when they initiated crowd chants of "down with the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June performance. The slogan was condemned by Glastonbury and UK Prime Minister the prime minister, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."
Following the incident, Bob Vylan was released by its representation UTA, and the US government revoked the artists' visas, forcing them to cancel a scheduled US and Canada tour.
Interview with Louis Theroux
During his first interview after the festival performance, Vylan, using his real name is Pascal Foster, spoke on a popular podcast. When asked if he would repeat his actions, he responded:
"Oh yeah. For instance what if I was to perform at the festival again tomorrow, definitely I would repeat it. I'm without regret of it. I'd say it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
He added that the backlash the band faced was "small compared to what individuals in Gaza are going through."
On the Chant's Importance
"I aim not to exaggerate the importance of the chant," he continued. "That's not what I'm attempting to do, but if I have the Palestinian people's backing, these are the individuals that I'm advocating for, they're the people that I'm being vocal for, then what is there to feel sorry about? Oh, because I've angered some rightwing politician or some conservative media?"
Surprising Response and BBC Comments
This artist said he was surprised by the uproar sparked by the chant, and stated that staff of the broadcaster staff at the event told him on the day that the performance was "fantastic."
However, the broadcaster's executive complaints unit later determined that the BBC's airing of the show breached content guidelines in regard to offense and offence.
He told the host there was no indication of a controversy in the immediate aftermath: "It wasn't like we came off stage, and everyone was like [shocked]. It felt normal. We come off stage. It's normal. No one thought anything. Nobody. Including staff at the broadcaster were like 'It was fantastic! We enjoyed that!'"
Reply to Blur Frontman
Vylan also hit back at the Blur singer, who labeled the protest "one of the most spectacular misfires I've witnessed in my life" and described Vylan as "marching in tennis gear."
Albarn's reaction was "letdown" and "lacked self-awareness," Vylan said.
"I need to say that categorising it as a 'huge mistake' implies that somehow the politics of the duo or our stance on Palestinian liberation is unplanned," he explained.
"I strongly object with the term 'goose-stepping' being used because it's typically associated around Nazi Germany," he continued. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is disgusting. I think his response was disgusting."
Meaning Behind the Chant
After asked what he meant by the chant "Death to the IDF," Vylan clarified the chant itself was "unimportant."
"What is important is the conditions that persist to allow that chant to even occur on that platform. And I mean, the circumstances that exist in Palestine. In which the Palestinian population are being killed at an disturbing rate. What matters about the slogan?" he stated.
"Death to the IDF rhymes," he added: "Stop the IDF' does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, would it? … We are there to entertain. We are there to play music. I am a lyricist. 'Death, Death to IDF' rhymes. Perfect chant."
Rejection of Hate Speech Allegations
Vylan also denied claims from the Community Security Trust, a watchdog and Jewish safety organisation, that their performance contributed to a spike in antisemitic events recorded later.
"I don't think I have created an hostile environment for the Jewish community. Suppose there were large numbers of individuals acting and saying 'Bob Vylan made me do this'. I could go, oof, I've had a bad impact here," he said.
Contrast with Other Artists
As he said he thought the duo had been criticised more heavily than others for voicing views about the situation, the host referenced the Ireland-based band Kneecap, who have also faced backlash for their method to pro-Palestine advocacy.
"That's an interesting one," Vylan said, "because as with all things ethnicity becomes a factor in that we are an more convenient villain, seriously, than others are because we are already the opponent."