Bobby Vylan Position on Glastonbury IDF Protest: "Zero Regrets"
Punk duo frontman of Bob Vylan has expressed he is "not regretful" about his "death, death to the IDF" performance at the festival and declared he would "do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
Controversial Exclamation and Political Reactions
The vocal punk pair sparked widespread debate when they initiated crowd chants of "death, death to the IDF," pointing to the IDF, during their June performance. This chant was censured by Glastonbury and UK Prime Minister the prime minister, who labeled it as "appalling hate speech."
After the event, Bob Vylan was released by its agency UTA, and the American government revoked the members' travel documents, forcing the duo to call off a planned US and Canada concert series.
Conversation with the Podcaster
During his first public discussion since the festival show, Vylan, using his birth name is Pascal Foster, spoke on a popular podcast. When questioned if he would repeat his actions, he responded:
"Oh yeah. For instance what if I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, definitely I would do it again. I'm without regret of it. I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays."
The artist added that the backlash the band faced was "minimal compared to what people in Gaza are going through."
Regarding the Chant's Significance
"I aim not to exaggerate the significance of the slogan," 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 people that I'm speaking up for, then what is there to regret? Well, because I've upset some conservative official or some conservative media?"
Surprising Reaction and BBC Feedback
This artist said he was surprised by the uproar sparked by the chant, and asserted that members of BBC staff at Glastonbury told him on the same day that the performance was "excellent."
However, the broadcaster's executive complaints unit later found that the BBC's airing of the show breached content guidelines in regard to harm and hurt.
Vylan told the host there was no indication of a controversy in the immediate aftermath: "It didn't feel like we left stage, and everyone was like [gasps]. It's just normal. We leave stage. It was normal. Nobody thought anything. Nobody. Even crew at the broadcaster were like 'It was fantastic! We loved that!'"
Response to Damon Albarn
The musician also hit back at Damon Albarn, who labeled the chant "a major misstep I've witnessed in my life" and characterized him as "marching in tennis gear."
His reaction was "letdown" and "showed no self-awareness," Vylan remarked.
"I need to say that labeling it as a 'huge mistake' implies that somehow the politics 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 typically associated around the Nazis," he continued. "That's it. And for him to use that wording, I think is offensive. I think his answer was disgusting."
Intent Behind the Chant
When questioned what he intended by the phrase "Death to the IDF," Vylan said the chant itself was "insignificant."
"The key issue is the situation that persist to allow that chant to even take place on that stage. And I mean, the circumstances that are present in the region. Where the local population are being slain at an disturbing rate. What matters about the chant?" he said.
"The phrase rhymes," he noted: "Stop the IDF' does not rhyme, wouldn't have caught on, right? … We are there to perform. We are there to play music. I am a songwriter. 'The chant' rhymes. Perfect slogan."
Rejection of Antisemitism Allegations
The musician also rejected assertions from the CST, a monitoring and Jewish community safety group, that their performance led to a spike in antisemitic incidents recorded two days.
"I don't think I have caused an unsafe environment for the Jewish community. If there were large numbers of individuals going out and saying 'We made me do this'. I might go, oh, I've had a negative impact here," he said.
Contrast with Different Artists
As he said he thought the band had been criticised more severely than others for voicing views about the conflict, the host referenced the Ireland-based group Kneecap, who have also encountered backlash for their approach to pro-Palestinian messaging.
"That's a notable point," Vylan said, "since as with all things race comes to play a part in that we are an more convenient target, seriously, than they are because we are already the enemy."