The British punk duo Bob Vylan asked the audience at the first appearance since the controversial gig at the Glastonbury Festival in 2025 to not repeat a “Death to the IDF” singing-in German: “Death to the Israeli armed forces”-which it even at the UK Open-Air.
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The announcement brought the announcement during a concert on July 9th in the London 100 Club. Frontmann Bobby Vylan turned directly to the fans and said: “No no no no, you otherwise get me into trouble.” Instead, he led the crowd to a “Free, Free Palestine” Chant, which in his opinion would rather go.
“We would not have expected us to initiate such a debate”
On the context: At her Glastonbury appearance at the end of June, Bob Vylan had expressed her solidarity with Palestine and showed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) with the said speaking choir. This appearance led to intensive criticism and a subsequent police examination. As a result, several of their planned concerts in Germany and France were canceled, their agents separated from them and their US visa were revoked.
In conversation with the audience at the London-Gig, Bob Vylan expressed himself exhausted, but definitely: “We are extinguishing fires. We did not expect us to initiate such a debate.” Singer Bobby Vylan described the situation in the occupied areas as “absolute chaos” and condemned the procedure for Palestinians: inside. “We only want the liberation of the Palestinian people,” continued Vylan. “This is not a violent demand, but the pursuit of freedom of oppression. We do not let ourselves be silent.”
Mixed reactions to controversial statements
The public service broadcaster BBC, which had broadcast the Glastonbury appearance live, described Bob Vylan’s statements as “insulting and detention”. As a result, a BBC Music manager resigned, and the BBC announced that they will show no live broadcasts from appearances in the future that are classified as “risky”. Several artists: inside, including the Lambrini Girls, Amyl & The Sniffers, Soft Play, Massive Attack and Chuck D, publicly expressed their support for Bob Vylan and asked for a stronger focus on the situation in Gaza.
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Cancellations followed
The British band was also unloaded by the Radar Festival in Manchester. Several bands, including Hero in Error, canceled their participation in the festival in solidarity with Bob Vylan. In addition, several concerts in Germany were canceled, including appearances as the opening act of the US band Gogol Bordello in Hamburg, Stuttgart and Cologne. This was confirmed by the organizer FKP Scorpio to the German Press Agency. The cancellations were under pressure from the Federal Government’s anti -Semitism officer, Felix Klein, who sharply criticized Bob Vylan’s appearance at Glastonbury. Klein said: “I find it repulsive and unworthy to abuse the stage of a music festival in a targeted manner and publicly for hatred and agitation and to call it up to the death of people.”